Worth
by Lady-von-Strife
Summary: PART II up!When all Hell literally breaks loose, the Avengers turn to Loki for information about the mysterious woman known as the Nephilim for help. The threads of Fate are changing and Loki finds himself deeply attached to the woman who has to die. Would he risk his last chance to prove himself for the sake of another? LOKI/OC
1. Part I: IRIDESCENCE One: The Search

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

_Set in the Aftermath of Loki's destruction where an army of invisible creatures forces the Avengers to gather once more. Unable to see and scathe the creatures, Loki urges the Avengers to seek out the mysterious woman who had survived the attack. However, the world they were about to enter was a world they would soon regret finding and as move lives are saved, the cost for freedom is higher than ever. __An abrupt change in Loki's demeanor provides as a vitality for the survival of the woman he falls far, however, the price for freedom is sacrifice._

* * *

Genre: General, Action, Mystery, Romance, Sci-fi

Rated: T-M

**AN**: This is another product of a huge fanbase frenzy I have for Marvel, now particularly on Loki Laufeyson. The Avengers was a great watch in my opinion, was really satisfied by the adaptation. I am in nowhere means an expert of the Marvel-Avengers world and so I have decided to write a spin-off based off on my own interpretation of their world so expect some inconsistencies. More on my blurbs later!

* * *

**One: The Search**

* * *

LOKI

* * *

Iridescence…the Earth continues to emit a spectrum of beautiful light.

I do not admit to such pleasure from watching the mortals but the simplistic calm of the Earth's rotation participates actively in my enlightenment. My sentence has forced me to delve into my half-brother's traits. At first, it was quite sickening to hear him speak of Midgard as its inhabitants would address it. _Earth_… plain, nonsensical sphere of mortals and yet it would seem life there was more pleasant than any other realm.

Three years had passed since my rebellion and I soon find myself in mutual fascination with planet he has grown so fond of. It was always his mortal lover, Jane- the woman of science who became the reason for the change of his proud heart and yet I still find myself without understanding of his ability to harbor such a need to protect others besides his own people.

If_ I_ were made king, I would heed the wishes and improvement of my own at priority. I would build my empire and waste time solely for its progress._ But that day would never come._

My intentions were so clear and direct and yet people brand it with such selfishness they call mine. But maybe, I was never meant for the throne. Maybe I was meant for more. It has been proven time and again that the depths of space are far more mysterious and enticing to step foot on and to discover more about it would bring me more purpose than before.

Perhaps it has come for my time to tread the galaxy beyond and understand the true meaning of what they call…humanity.

Even from a distance.

I have travelled the Earth in my mind's eye countless of times. I have searched every nook and corner and counted the hairs and feathers of ever race and specie but I have yet to taste the sweetness of mortality. Do not get me wrong, I am not adept to stripping myself of power but at times, I am stricken with luck to witness the past of one but only so rare. It was always times like that where I would wish to be just a normal person reading from a book.

Yet, time ceases to go by fast when you're a god of Asgard but to spend an hour to drink from their cups and feel the comfort of simple conversation is priceless still. _Only then could I finally feel free…_

My perspective of the human realm was entrapped in a loop of planned events but I was utterly wrong. The interest on simple disruptions and joy fascinates me which have strangely served as comforting thoughts to ponder upon as I remain night and day caged within the walls of my realm. Though I was given mercy and relieved from my banishment and isolation, I am still, in a literal sense, in shackles… Weights were bound to my wrists in the form of gauntlets and this strange magic was something I could only conclude as power drawn from the Tesseract. _Anything was better than being shunned in the room with no doors._

I do regret my poor decisions and I am more than willing to oblige to serve what is due me but I still yearn for freedom.

The lingering thoughts of the Earth's past may have brought about such an ugly façade from other watchers. It was rare to see humanity defined in their literature as kind, ever-loving and peaceful individuals and yet it was not all lost. That is what others would say in the least. I still firmly believed that subjugation was of paramount consideration. Just, not now.

There are times when I yearn to find out more but I could only hope. I was merely a shadow in the darkness of the night sky. An unencumbered soul longing for retribution and the more time I pass from being acquitted for my treasons, so does my interest in all else decline.

_What else was left for me to look forward to? I was bound to a dull life without any hope for fulfillment._

And yet when all of my wishful thinking was for my free abandonment, I've turned witness to an extraordinary event which I could safely say was not made by human hands. I have made a discovery which has changed my life forever.

Time may have escaped the Fates that day. It was a rare occasion for the other gods to catch a glimpse of the past without paying any price especially if the memories did not belong to one's own. I was never sure if I was truly meant to stand witness to a mortal child' s escape from death. It was an eerie sight to see the thunder cycle purge the earth and set forth a storm which had inhabited the whole city of Remeron. Maelstroms of dirty water and debris corrupted its peace. The memory centers on a rooftop where men in odd looking clothing stood shaken and anxious and at their side stood a very troubled girl, drenched in rain water and what looked like tints of blood. They were about eight stories from the pit and all of their eyes darted toward the black depths.

The girl spoke, "We have to do something!" her tone was quite frantic.

A man twice her size stood to block her from stepping towards the ledge, "I know this is hard but if we push through, I can assure you that we'd lose more lives…"

The girl put a hand on the man's side now and gripped it, "You were sent here to help! You're not telling me that you're gonna let that child die while we get hoisted up that chopper!" her eyes drilled through them like a sharp blade and the man could only look at her in utter disappointment.

The man looked like he was filled with more fear than guilt, "I'm so sorry…there's nothing else we can do!"

"No…" The girl released the man now but her expression began to shift from distraught to all seriousness. I creased my temple as I continued to watch in all curiosity, "You're right, there's nothing else that you can do but, there's something that _I _can…" The girl without hesitation pushed the man aside and jumped down the tall structure. My eyes shot wide at the sight of the girl entering much danger. Her fall created a harsh sound that the men couldn't help but shout out of shock. The scene had now shifted into the very depths of the flood, where the child was spotted floating almost lifelessly with the current. The water was very dark and only a strange flicker of light began to approach the location of the little boy. He had looked like he was no older than seven, the same age that my brother and I were told about the claim to the throne… Such a young age to meet one's end and yet it was the same in any other realm.

Life ends all so suddenly but clearly luck had smiled on the child that day for one brave girl had decided to change the threads of time. The peculiar light began to ascend from the black water and as the scene began to focus more on that light, it was becoming clear that the beacon was emanating from a pair of eyes which glowed unnaturally. The girl had finally taken hold of the little boy who was fighting for his life but as all broken fates occur, the escape was never easy. As if some unseen force sent by the gods of death saw the event occur, the girl began to struggle from something…unseen. She was fighting a force dragging her apart from the boy she was rescuing and yet she remained steadfast in her mission. She never looked like she struggled for air, nor did she ever display any trouble with her vision and all so suddenly the memory began to blur.

Something at present felt amiss. The scenery shifted into Asgard and I began to notice the whole of the realm was unstable. The shaking of the ground caused a commotion that the guards sent to watch me were scattered to help the civilians. My brother rushed to the gates as I turned to race to the armory. By some instinct, I was drawn to the vault where the Tesseract was held. I forcefully opened the door and rushed inside. I was stunned at the glowing cask and I didn't know how to take action.

If I was caught inside the vault without being able to halt the fluctuation the Tesseract was causing, I would be accused of another revolt but nevertheless the attempt in itself would brand me of guilt, still I knew that retribution had to be done. And with what little magic left I had for my use, I had gathered the nearest supply of liquid and turned it into a sphere. I forced myself to encapsulate the sphere around the Tesseract despite the fact that the gauntlets were preventing the use of my inborn power. It took me a lot of my strength to form the sphere and when I could no longer control it, I directed my power towards the Tesseract and soon enough I found myself blinded by silver light, falling to the cold floor, weakened and barely conscious. Luckily, my efforts were not wasted for before I lost all consciousness, Asgard began to calm and I found myself in deep slumber.

* * *

The morn struck me all quite surprisingly, the light gave such a glare that opening my eyes came as a challenge. I hoisted my whole body to rouse and was soon made aware that I woke not by the light of day but noon. I was greeted by news from my mother stating the events that had occurred the night before. I was told that the Tesseract had caused an invariable amount of time warps from a number of realms but luckily the aqua sphere was able to contain its power from causing anymore disruptions. For that, I was awarded to roam around Asgard more freely despite still having eyes on my every move. The chains connecting the heavy gauntlets were also removed which gave quite an ease to my movement. Little by little, my brother had encouraged me to join the Warriors three and Lady Sif for meals, I would at times, but all was civil.

I preferred my solitude roaming around my so called home but I was often found at watch on the walkway towards the gates. I was always gifted with the eye of time and space...There, I continued watching the Earth. Quite honestly, I was entranced by finding the astounding girl from the memory. _The girl who I believed could give me a new reason for living…_

The search went for days and days and I was beginning to become so desperate that I formed shadow-selves and allowed them to linger on earth to be my extra set of eyes but truly, the day that I found her was the day that I had stopped looking. For what kind coincidence was brought that night when the stars declined from the heavens to dress the mundane sky that the same orbs of light I saw in the shallow depths of the storm was blinking towards me.

It was her, standing alone, perched into her balcony darting the moon unknowingly staring into my eyes. She has grown into quite a woman, still with similar features and yet something about had changed. I didn't know how to point out what had changed but I felt that something peculiar dragged me more towards her.

I never blinked. I was too afraid that if I did, she'd disappear and losing sight of her was not an option. Ironically, I wasn't the only watching that night and those beings from other realms clearly prepared a loud means to show their interest.

Without any reprise, she drew a silvery blade-almost invisible and frost-like from her sleeve. Without taking any breaths, she leaped from the balcony with such swiftness that it was difficult to follow her movement as she landed on a grassy yard. Soon enough, she was swinging her blade like slicing through hard air. The cuts brought about a red blanket on the muddy ground. It was the same look she etched that time on the water, and like the memory, she had no trace of fear and hesitation as she fought. She took a short time to clean the blade but it was too long until the invisible howling formed into black mists and I was finally able to see the creatures she was facing. They did not look the least bit familiar to me. They were emanating a sort of evil that I have not seen before. I did not exactly see clear enough to give such detail to those things, but, most of the time, I saw moving shadows of sharp clawed creatures coming towards her. She never lost concentration and her prowess truly showed as she continued to slash at the shadow-monsters. It didn't take too long 'til she was able to finish each one that pursued her. The finesse of her movements defined her experience that even when her combatants grew in number, she never looked fatigued. I was too stunned to exemplify the details of what had happened that night. My reactions were limited to squinting and gaping and yet my heart raced when I was the arachnid creatures able to break through her defenses and pierce her skin. Despite the cuts and bruises, she never showed any sign of serious pain and at times sparks would come from her hands as what I could only describe as frost forming from her fingertips creeping into the creatures' shell. She was scathed and dirtied and yet her determination never went away. _Who was this woman, or rather, what was she really?_

Questions began forming in my head and it was getting harder and harder to deny her of her immortality from seeing her cuts heal quite instantly. How that was even possible was beyond my understanding, unless she was of _my_ kind or…something stronger.

As if on cue, I was summoned back to my quarters, left wondering more about the identity of that woman and I could only look forward to dreaming of meeting her.

* * *

**The Great Hall, Asgard**

"There have been a number of messages from the human force you have joined. They have been requiring your assistance, your grace," My mother spoke to my brother like she would a true king but her emotions were still that of a mother lecturing a child. She looked at him with concern.

Thor sighed, "I dare not meddle into human matters all so suddenly. Father would agree with me,"

"He dares not but _you_ do. After the threat imposed by your brother not too long ago, you owe a debt to continually work for their peace and such a vulnerable race needs our kind. Your Jane, needs you,"

"Speak not of Jane. The last time I came to see her, I have brought in more harm than peace,"

"She would rather have you by her side in danger than not to have you at all. Do what is right and ponder on this,"

"I will. Thank You mother,"

* * *

For the past month, I have noticed creatures of the same kind that she fought lurking about the earth. It was quite disturbing to see what the humans would label as "unexplained mass murders," was not handled well. There were several attempts to fight back against the invisible forces but as far as I noticed, no human weaponry seemed to work. So far, it was only that woman who was able to see and slay those things, unfortunately, she was nowhere to be found and the current distress that the monsters were creating, the more the human alliance that my brother joined took interest in investigating the said occurrences. It was a wise choice to follow in my opinion. And truly, even those not among the mundane grew restless by the plague.

My brother finally descended from Asgard to attend to a meeting as advised by the S.H.I.E.L.D. council. It was typical for him to meddle with human matters but I would conclude that this would be an exception. I had opted to watch the meeting from above; I had thought that the situation would bring about a need to find the woman behind the silver blade.

I had mentioned her quite a number of times to my brother but he never had a chance to witness her in action nor see what she actually looked like. I was never quite sure if he even paid much care to my stories but in the least, the human race was very lucky that he cared for them.

* * *

**S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ**

Nick Fury took a deep breath before he spoke, clearly, he was distressed like any law enforcer on Earth of the current situation, "Gentlemen, thank you for coming to this meeting,"

"Yes, yes, please save us the introduction and just tell us what's wrong," it was Tony Stark who spoke with such haste. He got up from his seat and set on to fiddle with the technology that the conference room had installed.

Fury continued, "We are all threatened gentlemen,"

"_Again_, we are all threatened again," Stark interjected without facing the man with the eye patch.

"Do we have details on the said units, sir?" Steve Rogers sat upright as he reached for the files set on the table. I believe he was the only person set out on listening to Fury.

Nick sighed and leaned on the table, "Have you ever fought an unseen enemy Captain?"

The man known as Captain America winced as he looked towards Fury's direction, "You mean invisible? In a literal sense?" Nick Fury shook his head,

Clint Barton, the Hawkeye, came jumping from the foyer clearly from overhearing the discussion, "Unseen as in ghost unseen or magician unseen?"

Tony Stark scoffed and made a weird look as he faced his comrades, "You actually believe in those things agent Barton?"

"We faced ETs in the past. And I'm standing right next to a," Barton took a moment to assess my brother who remained oddly composed throughout the conversation, "Uh… Thor,"

My brother finally spoke, "I will take that as a compliment," he flashed one of those insane grins of his and patted Hawkeye hard on the back making him fumble.

"So… what _are_ we dealing with Nick? I, personally, don't believe in ghosts,"

"Well Stark," Nick Fury motioned for one of his men to ready the screen, "Something quite worse,"

Stark snarled, "Genetic mutation? Oooh, are the X-men real?" Tony's sarcastic remark made quite a few eyes roll as the screen began to project an image,

"Believe me, if they were…" Fury mumbled something before he continued, "I wouldn't call you. Take a look at the footage gentlemen,"

The footage was a melee of events that occurred within the last month, the most recent was a Middle Eastern attack in what clearly looked like a massacre.

Stark was the first to draw away from disgust, "I've seen the acts of war first hand but jeez, that guy was just abruptly sawed in half!"

Barton continued watching, "More like sawed by thin air. What the hell was that?"

"Sir, this could be the Tesseract, I know it is," Rogers was the most disturbed by the footage. I couldn't blame him, it was far worse that what I have seen in the past.

"Our investigation has come up with zero connections to the Tesseract, and if you have theories you better consult with our friend here," Fury gestured towards my brother now,

Thor shook his head, "There hasn't been any insurgencies by the cask, only a mild instability but nothing that could have affected Earth,"

"That's why I have brought you all here," Nick stood now and glanced at each of his newly formed allies, "I want… well I am asking you all to find out. Romanov's already in the move,"

"Now or never gentlemen," There was a moment of shared silence but the answer was written in their faces even before Fury finished speaking.

"What do you have in mind sir?"

Nick grinned, "There's only one way to find out who we're facing,"

* * *

**_Somewhere in Germany, Night_**

"What the hell are these things? We can barely see them!" Stark was utilizing his technological weaponry as he attempted to target the things attacking them,

Hawkeye struggled to keep pace as he climbed to have a better aim, "Oh we see them allright, they're just so damn fast!"

My brother took a moment to breath, "Well if human weaponry won't work on them the let's try…" Thor hoisted up Mjolnir and looked up at the heavens; he was summoning thunder, "Nature!" With one pound on the Earth's surface, a surge of white-blue light struck the monsters finally affecting their movement,

Steve let out a whistle, "We'll leave the rest to you,"

But to my disbelief, Mjolnir's power wasn't enough. It took only a moment for the creatures to resurface and this had caused quite a stir. If the Avengers aren't even able to kill off the creatures then the threat could spread as wide as other realms. It was clear that the search for that woman was no longer only mine to bear.

I could no longer watch idly by.

"Thor…you must retreat, it is the wise choice,"

Thor grunted, "Know your place brother! We could handle this,"

The monsters were gradually increasing in number, enough to circle my brother and his friends,

Rogers threw his S.H.I.E.L.D. to create a walkway, "I don't think it's the right time to speak to the voices in your head,"

"I think we all heard that and it's not a bad idea, JARVIS, voice identification," Stark had been blasting beams from his armored palm in his attempt to keep the monsters from close contact,

Barton sprinted down, "Definitely not someone we want to see again,"

They were still struggling to break the defenses of the horde but the ending was clear, it was time that I interjected even if it was an unwelcome gesture,

"I'm pulling you all out now!" And with a single stroke of lightning and the borrowed powers of Asgard, we were transported back to S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters. The impact of the transport was abrupt making the Avengers stumble as they landed. To my surprise, I too was transported to their base and my presence barely helped their situation. My brother was the first to spot me or rather hoist me up by the collar and drag me towards the wall, "What have you done?"

My hand shot up to control the pressure on his wrists, I was barely breathing but my brother's temper was always taken over by pride, "I believe I just saved your lives!" Realizing his rushed decision to corner me, he let me go but Nick Fury's men thought to keep sentiment.

"I mean no harm," my eyes never really met my former foes, I was more attentive to keep civility intact, after all, I held important information.

Fury frowned, "Yeah well, you can't be too sure. What the hell happened out there?" his tone was neither furious nor disruptive.

It was Captain America who explained, "We were outnumbered, guy pulled us out,"

Hawkeye stood as he grabbed an arrow and as I've guessed he planned to shoot it at me again, "More like we were useless,"

Stark took off his helm and dragged himself to a seat, "But we're alive, thanks to uh-" he pointed at me, "…mister world domination over there so, I say we give him a little break,"

"This is on you clowns. At ease gentlemen," Fury never shifted his attention and placed all eyes on me, so did the others.

We were gestured to occupy the seats around the conference room of course, my brother made sure that I was wearing the gauntlets and hadn't thought of leaving my side. The darkness in their eyes was very evident but it was agent Romanov who eyed me with the most distaste.

"What are you doing here brother?" Thor's tone was embroidered with steel.

"To help,"

Fury laughed, "You? Help us? What's the catch? 80% of the human population bowing down to you?" it didn't take long for him to point a gun at me. However useless it was, I was unnerved, "You're not going to give us some sort of Ant-Boot lecture now are you?

I shook my head and looked at him directly now, not minding his dark humor, "I ask for nothing in return," it was of course not the whole truth. It was a part of my selfishness and yearning to know the identity of the woman who was badly needed. And a little retribution wouldn't hurt the chances of my freedom.

"Yeah that's something easy to believe," Natasha Romanov walked across the room, eyeing me still.

"No, he's right. He's wearing anointed gauntlets, he can't hurt us and any attempts would be dealt with immediately," my brother spoke in what I assumed as part of my defense, "tell us brother, what is it that is so important for you to leave Asgard?"

"Your weapons," I now referred to Fury and the other mortals, "will not work against them,"

Fury was quick to rebbuttle, "So what are you saying, we just hand you the staff and let you go on your scurry way?"

My face hardened, "No, but I do know someone or rather I have seen only one person successful in pursuit,"

Nick placed a hand to his jaw, "Really? Who?" his tone was sarcastic, clearly no one was taking me seriously.

I took a moment to ponder, "I do not know her identity but…"

Fury walked towards me now, "You don't know her identity-?" he paused to edit, "Female, huh, we're going places," Fury rolled his eyes and put away his gun.

"Sir, I don't think your sarcasm is going to help us," Rogers grew impatient as did I. He dropped his S.H.I.E.L.D. and took of his helm,

I was irritated but I couldn't let their silly banter break me, "But…" I continued, "I do know what she looks like,"

"Now what, you're gonna," Stark made weird hand gestures as he spoke, "paint us a picture? Please…" Stark kept on mumbling his weird human comments as he looked away.

I cocked a brow, "If you prefer it,"

Thor placed an arm to my shoulder, "You must speak no lies to us brother,"

"I'm not lying," my eyes narrowed now, on each of them.

Fury let out a sigh, "Fine, Romanov, give him a pen and paper," Romanov gave him an unenthused look, "You're crazy," he spoke to me now, "But you're also a god,"

Natasha Romanov threw the materials at me and I began to sketch her features through memory. Every one of them gawked as I drew. I was surprised to see my work tirelessly form. It didn't take me too long to finish,

"That's her brother? I never knew you had a talent for illustration,"

Rogers took the paper from my hands as I stood to give them space to file some recognition at the subject, "Wow… she's…she's…"

"A babe," Clint Barton finished his sentence making Romanov roll her eyes at his comment but as they were huddled together to let the details of the drawing sink in, it was Stark who felt like he had seen her before.

I had narrated the time warp that had incurred and the memories I saw. I was almost amazed at their willingness to listen to my absurd story but considering the situation they would take in any available option in hand. Soon enough, Fury had mobilized his team to search for a match.

"Anything else you can tell us about her?" Stark asked as if delved in much curiosity.

I placed hand to my chin as I walked towards a window, "Well… she has long golden hair and blue eyes like that of frost…probably around Romanov's age,"

"Stalker," Stark said as he coughed in mockery.

Stark scratched his head, "Where have I seen her before?" His eyes went in all directions until he clasped his hands and moved toward Fury, "Get me Pepper,"

* * *

"Well, she's familiar alright," it was Stark's lover speaking through the screen,

"Who is she Pepper?"

"Well Tony, if you would've gone to the meeting with me you would know," For a while Stark and Pepper Pots glared at each other but it was Romanov who grew impatient,

"Could we please save the LQs and get on with this,"

"Fine," Pepper took another look at the picture, "Her name is Dylan Sinclair,"

I repeated her name in mind. Finally…

Stark was startled, "Sinc-Sinclair?"

Fury raised his brows, "You know her Mr. Stark?"

Pepper spoke in his behalf, "He does, unfortunately just by reputation,"

Romanov and Barton went to check their data base for the woman now identified as Dylan Sinclair and by the looks on their faces, she seemed like a very interesting woman.

"Agents, anything?"

Clint Barton read from the database, "Mostly classified information, she seems like she has a backer,"

Romanov continued, "Sinclair, Dylan B., registered physician, Trauma and Heart Surge, experience in clinical psych and current acting CEO for Sinclair Conglo…head honcho, huh,"

"Seems like an important person," Rogers joined the two to view her files, "Currently working at JHU, whereabouts are in Remeron (2006) now a freelance agent," Rogers eyes shifted to right side of the screen, "What is this? Project Beatrice, XX Mundi?" Rogers waited for answers to come from the two agents but the two looked as puzzled as he was.

"Though I do not understand most of your human speech, it would be safe to say that most of your information is hardly helpful," Thor spoke with much seriousness,

"Yeah well, that's all we got so far, have you had any contact with her Ms. Potts?"

"Sorry Natasha, none since the meeting. Speaking of which I have one to get to. Tell Iron Man that when he decides to go home, I won't be there,"

"I wouldn't be surprised," I finally broke my silence, "I haven't seen her for quite a while,"

All eyes were on me now, as if my statement was some sort of code they couldn't decipher. I shook my head and frowned. I was growing tired of their bickering. The whole world was in danger and having said that from experience of trying to control their precious Earth, I'd say I cared more than they did.

Fury motioned for Romanov and Barton to take stationed at the outer deck of the headquarters where their aircrafts were stationed. Fury held Rogers' S.H.I.E.L.D. then slid it across the table towards their Captain America, "Got a mission for me sir?"

Nick smiled at Rogers', "Time for us to introduce ourselves,"

* * *

**AN:** And that's part one, I wrote the whole thing during my OJT on a hotel stationery and a notepad out of my 'can't get over the movie' phase. I have some work and research to do for the action 'scenes' among others but the context is largely based on the movies so the characterizations come from there. (For those who would like to do a Beta-collaboration with me regarding the action or combat segments, please message me) - this only applies if you people actually want me to continue this. This fic will most probably be short, around 3 chapters or so.

In case you've been wondering where I got the idea of Dylan Sinclair © LVS from my Devil May Cry fan fiction so yes, this is sort of a cross over…SORT OF. This my first time writing a Marvel fic so I do hope you're all satisfied and yes, there _will_ be fluff. (MARVEL VS. CAPCOM?) hahaha Also, I do apologize for the hoarding of Dr. Sinclair's resume, there IS a reason why she's all head honcho and shi- not mary sue, believe me. This won't become a cross-over soon though, I already plan on making Dylan S. an independent story line for this fic.

Thanks for reading!

Part two to be posted indefinitely.

-LVS

PS in case you haven't noticed, I am really digging Tom Hiddleston (Loki) right now so yeah…the monologues were written as dictated by his voice in my head :D harhar, helps with imagining things.


	2. Two: Found

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

___Set in the Aftermath of Loki's destruction where an army of invisible creatures forces the Avengers to gather once more. Unable to see and scathe the creatures, Loki urges the Avengers to seek out the mysterious woman who had survived the attack. However, the world they were about to enter was a world they would soon regret finding and as move lives are saved, the cost for freedom is higher than ever. __An abrupt change in Loki's demeanor provides as a vitality for the survival of the woman he falls far, however, the price for freedom is sacrifice._

* * *

**TWO: Found **

* * *

LOKI

* * *

Fury and his men wasted no time to determine a perfect schedule to confront the mysterious doctor. The doctor was quite tricky to locate. Besides the fact that she was a busy woman, she had someone covering her tracks, clearly, she did not want to be found. Of course, S.H.I.E.L.D did not look at this as an option and luckily the world of business provided a glitch into her system and Stark was able to confirm her current whereabouts.

Unfortunately, I was not part of the mobilized group and yet, I continued watching…

* * *

_**JHU ER**_

"Don't forget the plan Captain," Fury did some last minute checks to make sure that the plan was to go smoothly. They were at a University Hospital where the doctor was currently stationed. Fury had ordered some of his agents to pose as hospital staff and had the whole compound surrounded by S.H.I.E.L.D men. There was an unspoken and yet mutual agreement that Dylan Sinclair could still be considered a threat should she refuse to join us or maybe, he was just as curious as I was in terms of seeing what she could do.

Rogers took a moment to examine his body, "And you're sure she'll buy this?" He touched his bare skin with some sort of organic stitching made to look like an open wound. His face cringed in disgust as his palm got coated in a red sticky substance and quite placidly, he reached for the nearest cloth and wiped out the mess. His eyes narrowed on Fury as he watched the leader of their alliance hold his laughter. Natasha entered the section wearing a clean nurse's uniform and took a moment to assess their Captain America. Romanov inhaled and raised a brow, "Hopefully, she'll buy it long enough," Romanov shifted her attention from Rogers to Fury and took the charts from the desk to prepare for her 'performance.'

Nick Fury's phone rang and disrupted their calm; I take it that it was time for them to get ready themselves, "Yeah…" It was Barton on the other side, updating him on the doctor's every move. Nick put down his phone and nodded at Romanov as a signal for her first step, "…crunch time folks," he patted the now shirtless Rogers on the back as Natasha motioned for him to lie down and act disabled. As soon as he returned the phone on his pocket, Fury set off for his leave.

Rogers ruffled his hair and gave Nick a doubting look as soon as Romanov left to fetch the doctor, "Trust me Captain, I've seen her from afar, you _will_ thank me later," and with that, Fury disappeared.

Natasha rustled in as she gave last minute instructions to Rogers, "Act like your dying for Christ's sake!" her eyes grew wide in a slight panic. Dylan Sinclair was a professional and any ruse made obvious would not escape her.

"Wait what?" Before he could make any more interjections, Natasha shoved her elbow into his stomach making him wail and close his eyes. It wasn't the kind of wailing that you would expect from a serious blow, it was more of a 'surprise-inflicted' pain.

Footsteps began prodding as Natasha re-entered with the doctor. Rogers was still unable to open his eyes in his attempt to act like he was truly in pain and I too was already struggling with using my powers to see through what was happening. It had been days since I last saw her and now there she was… Fair-skinned, at sensible height, golden-haired and luminescent…like every other time I saw her.

The lady doctor pushed the white curtains aside and began doing these premeditated procedures of course lucky for my brother's friend; he didn't need much medical assistance.

"What do we have here Nurse…" her eyes lowered into Romanov's nameplate, "_…Ronin_?" her voice was stern but without the edge of conceit. It was all very natural to her, these medical procedures but her tone was always entwined with a tenderness that only a practitioner of her expertise could show if she valued sentiment.

Natasha thought before she spoke, "Uh… lateral laceration at least 4 inches deep, extreme blood-loss…this is Cadet Maric Smith. He was run over by a military vehicle while on service," She let out a sigh. She was very relieved to have delivered her speech perfectly to remove all suspicion should she forget the words. Natasha stepped aside as the doctor took over and began examining Rogers' fake wound unfortunately, Rogers wasn't as good an actor as Romanov was and based on the expression that formed as her eyes traced the wound, her suspicion began to surface.

Dylan Sinclair's eyes went from his wound to Rogers himself, "He'll be fine in the least; his consciousness is a good sign despite the blood-loss, I better have him do a CT and MRI though," she took her penlight and moved closer towards his face, she was flashing the light in his eyes now, "Mr. Smith," she began to put some pressure in his chest on which Rogers winced on cue, "Can you see me? Can you tell me how many fingers I'm holding up?"

The Captain didn't respond. The doctor now manually opened his eyes and cupped his face, "Mr. Smith, I need you to focus. Can you tell me the color of my eyes? Anything?" Her forehead creased in anticipation. _Cautious, this one…_

Rogers waited for some sort of signal before he responded and Natasha tapping his leg was just that, "Uh…y-yess…they're…" Steve Rogers slowly opened his eyes and for a moment, he was left stunned by the gleaming eyes boring into his. _She was a very beautiful lady indeed._

"Mr. Smith?" she said, unblinking,

"Bl-blue…"

"You'll be okay Mr. Smith. Nurse, get a Neuro consult. I'll stitch him up myself," Romanov nodded and left. It was about time that she mobilize Fury's units, judging from what I saw, she was not someone to be taken lightly. And Rogers was about to pay the price for our…trickery.

"Th-thank you doctor," Rogers slowly lifted himself up by leaning with his shoulders on the bed and sliding his whole body upward. He was preparing to take her.

She didn't turn to respond to Rogers words and because of this, he took the liberty and silently jumped off the hospital bed, "Oh, it's no problem Mr. Smith," the doctor was only a feet away from him when the captain grabbed her arm and tried to put her on lock, unfortunately, she saw through his act and quickly spun to deflect his move. Before he was able to counter, the doctor grabbed Rogers by the forearm and pinned him into the bed, headfirst, "So much for a fake injury huh Mr. Smith?" Her right hand had twisted his hands making him cringe and a little helpless, her free hand was situated into the back of his head which kept him from being able to turn his head and to ensure her attacker from being able to move, her knee pressed into his back. _How was this lady, smaller than Rogers, able to get the better of him? _

Steve kept trying to break free, I wasn't quite sure if his gestures were intentional but he seemed like he was in such a fit, "Ma'am...I didn't mean to startle you but I assure you," The doctor leaned harder giving him less room to breathe, "we…we've come with good reason,"

The doctor gripped harder even as Natasha came barging in, gun in hand, "Dr. Sinclair, please come with us, we're here on orders," she was forcing herself to calm now as it was quite obvious how stunned she was at the doctor's strength, "Allow us to peacefully escort you out of the building," Romanov's stare shifted from the doctor to her immobile comrade. She cocked her gun and inhaled, "Please,"

Dr. Sinclair lifted Steve off the bed but still kept him immobile, "And who exactly _are_ you Nurse _Ronin_?" She eyed Romanov sternly as her eyes scanned the exit points of the room. She was already knowledgeable about the number of men waiting for her.

"The good guys," Rogers exclaimed, still struggling.

She winced at Rogers' statement, "What do you want from me?" Her tone was serious now, and all kindness withdrew from her face. It was clear that we weren't the only ones who have shown interest in her.

"We just wanna talk," Natasha lowered her gun, "Please, just an hour of your time,"

Dylan motioned for Steve to walk closer to Romanov now, "Sorry, I'm on a tight schedule," she shoved Rogers in front of Romanov making him knock her over and him landing on his back, as the two kept from losing any more balance, the doctor ran towards the nearest exit. A number of men from S.H.I.E.L.D. had greeted her as she raced across the hospital wing. They were of no contest to her and moving pass them only made the hurdle more difficult for Romanov and Rogers. The doctor had no intention of hurting anyone though, well at least not seriously as she mostly ran past them or made them unconscious. She had made her way towards the rooftop and I was amazed at how fast she moved. It was difficult to keep track of her. Romanov was already running out of breath from catching up to her that Rogers took over the chase.

The doctor kicked open the entrance to the rooftop as Rogers called out to her. Unfortunately, Fury knew that this type of thing will happen. A strong gust of wind had halted her and it was only a matter of time until Fury came dangling outside with a helicopter ready to fire. It was Barton taking command of the aircraft, "A pleasure to meet you Dr. Sinclair, my name is Nick Fury and I'm very sorry for the uh circumstances," Barton kept the aircraft afloat as he positioned it near enough the building for Fury to hop off.

Dylan frowned and looked in all corners only to be greeted by Rogers, Romanov and the rest of Fury's men, "I don't want to hurt anyone Mr. Fury and you shouldn't waste your time on me,"

Nick motioned for Hawkeye to lower the aircraft's rope ladder, "I understand however, we're quite desperate. Perhaps we could give you a lift then? Your cousin, is already on board," Fury prepared had predicted all possible outcomes and using a human pawn was beneath him but there was no other choice.

Her hand balled up into a fist and looked icily at each of them, "Fine, drop him off and I'll go with you. _Now_. Before I change my mind."

* * *

_**S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ**_

We had assembled at around noon to wait for the others to arrive with the doctor and I grew restless from all the waiting. I didn't know what to make of the situation it was too surreal for me. Every time the doors slid opened, I felt myself quiver and I kept telling myself that would all be worth our wait. I was pacing back and forth the foyer where the others had eyed me weirdly and it was only a matter of time when Rogers, Romanov and Barton came barging in. By the looks on their faces, it didn't go as smoothly as they expected. Of course, having witnessed the events, I wasn't surprised. But still the others have arrived without her despite their agreement. I began to worry, it was only because of the remnants of the scepter that Barton had on him that I was able to see through the whole thing but of course it had its limits.

My brother took initiative, "Did you all fare well? Where is this woman of medicine?"

Romanov and Barton merely shrugged as they positioned themselves on their monitors. They were followed by a troubled Steve Rogers who painstakingly directed himself to the nearest seat. My brother etched a confused look.

"The hell happened with you?" Stark quipped looking at Rogers head to foot as if he had been trampled on my some beast. Rogers merely shrugged him off, "Don't ask,"

The trail was followed by two sets of footsteps as well as the echoing of Fury's voice as well as the voice of the doctor. The door slid open once more and Fury motioned for the doctor to enter. Upon entering, the doctor gave the room a quick scan and I in turn stopped pacing, "Thank you again for your cooperation Doctor, this won't take long," Nick Fury was followed by a young, slender woman with long golden hair. Her eyes had matched what I drew and she looked like a statue brought to life. I was stunned and so were the others. I couldn't believe that the woman I was looking for was only a few feet away from me.

"Gentlemen, this is Dr. Dylan Sinclair," all eyes were on her now. She had merely given us a dry smile as she took a few steps closer. Rogers shied away as the doctor gave him an apologetic look, the rest however reflected looks of disbelief.

"I know creepy right?" Romanov stated referring to the sketch I drew for them. Even I was stirred.

Dylan winced, "Not a very talkative bunch are you. I take it you all heard of me?" She raised a brow at Nick and sighed, "So, you're S.H.I.E.L.D,"

"You've heard of us?"

"You're not the only one with eyes and ears Director Fury. I've heard some _interesting_ things about you and your organization," Fury blinked and merely walked towards us,

"Who are you _really Why _have you brought me here?" she finally asked, standing on guard, "I don't suppose you're all here to ask me for a consult," She unbuttoned her white coat and rolled her sleeves as she waited for a reply.

Natasha was the first to approach, "Natasha Romanov, we've met," she pointed towards Clint who was on his way up, "That's agent Clint Barton,"

"You all work for Fury?" she shook hands with the both of them and walked closer as she eyed the others. Natasha clicked her tongue, "Officially? Just the two of us,"

Finally Steve Rogers stood to introduce himself properly, still hints of his embarrassment couldn't be displaced, "I'm…Captain America, about earlier…" she shook her head and gave him another one of her apologetic smiles, "Does Captain American have a name or is it really Smith?"

"Steve Rogers,"

Nick Fury stood by her side now as if to warn her that among the group assembled we were an active threat. He probably thought it best to still keep a distance from us, afterall, Asgardians have been causing Earth quite a commotion. _And I was always at its core._ "Dr. Sinclair this is Thor,"

Thor offered his hand and spoke before she shook it, "god of Thunder," Dylan smirked at my brother's introduction, "Of course." She began, "Dr. Foster has told me about you,"

"You know my Jane?" My brother was well enthused and grinned like the proud idiot he was.

"Yes," she said nothing more to support her claim but her statement increased my brother's trust for her.

Fury stood between me and her now as if I was some unwanted toxin. It was unnerving to find him hold such a grudge for me at this time. I, in the least expected a bit more decency with the vital information I had given him, "This is his brother, they're both from Asgard," I shot Fury a look before I offered my hand but to my surprise, she was the one who approached me and offered a greeting, I was almost at a loss for words. There in front of me was Dylan Sinclair, the girl from the memory… "I am Loki," those were the only words that I was able to form and actually mouth. She shook my hand and for a moment I was left stunned by her face. In an instant, I felt my pulse quicken and I didn't know why, "Asgard," she finally spoke, "If my Norse is accurate, I'd say that-"

"Yes," Fury interjected, "They're _foreigners_,"

"So," She walked past Fury and darted her eyes at the direction of the Avengers. She crossed her arms and positioned herself in between my brother and the captain, "What can I do for your elite brand of gods and highly trained combatants?" She was neither sarcastic nor unenthused. Her statement was more in demand of detail than musings.

"And…" Tony grinned and finally joined in the conversation as he strutted down the silver stairs where Barton trekked earlier on wearing a business suit and tinted spectacles. Stark had loosened his tie and removed his eyewear, "…don't forget a billionaire, genius and all around super sleuth," he approached the doctor with much enthusiasm and was left the sole person to idiotically flash gritty beams at us to support his gesture, "Hello Dr. Sinclair, it's an honor. I don't believe we've met-" he and my brother would get along fine in the long run.

Dylan shook his hand and gave him a snarl, "Tony Stark, Pepper has told me about your recent endeavors as_ Iron Man_," Tony pulled on his chin as if to give her a look of gratuity, "Yes well, just trying to save the world," Tony had placed a hand to her back as if to lead her into a private conversation. He spoke in a lower tone as he steered her away from us, "I don't mean to be a buzz kill doctor but uh, has Pepper mentioned the grant to you 'cause I'll be glad to walk you through it," Stark had stood in front of the doctor as he placed his hands on his pockets and kept his smile stapled on his face.

Fury sighed in disbelief, "Stark, this is not the time to be making business proposals!"

Stark's expression quickly dropped into a frown but quickly turned his emotions around when the doctor took notice. To award his enthusiasm, the doctor pursed her lips and nodded at him, "I'll think about it,"

"Enough," Thor made his way towards the center of the conference room and rested his palms on the transparent tables, "We must discuss the reason for our gathering,"

Romanov handed Fury a file before going back to her station. In between talks, she and Barton would give me grim looks which of course was a given in spite of recent events, "Couldn't agree more," Nick flipped open the file, "Doctor Sinclair, you've heard and read about the Manhattan incident three years ago have you not?" Fury asked in all honesty as he momentarily eyed my direction.

She made a half smile, "How could I miss it?"

Fury closed the file and tucked it at his side, "And you believe the so-called alien invasion? It's not just some ruse or experiment gone wrong?"

Her hand went to down to her waist as her gaze shifted from the floor to Fury's direction, "Mr. Fury, I've seen many things, and that event isn't something I would call a set-up. If you've seen what I've seen, you'd believe anything,"

"Then I guess you'll do us the favor of sharing with us the things that only_ you_ could see,"

Fury took the time to show her the same footage he showed to my brother and as we've observed, she was as troubled as we were but she was more concerned at what she could actually see. _Were these things worse than the Chitauri?_

"I believe you understand why we've brought you here?"

She was silent. Fury and the others could only wait for her to speak in her own time. She took a moment to breath and closed her eyes, "Things got more serious than I thought,"

Thor pointed at the screen, "Our powers have been proven useless against them. My brother has told us about your skills,"

"How?" Dylan eyed me now as if it was impossible for anyone to know about her recent activities. _How could anyone? Unless they were looking from above._

I paused to edit, "I saw you one night, as I was taking a stroll," I had lied; I did not want any one of them to think of me in an odd manner. Fortunately for me, no one had questioned my claim.

"The question is _what _are those things?"

She exhaled deeply as she lifted her eyes from the screen. She was familiar with them, "Well Captain, I can assure you that they're not from space, they're far worse,"

"Far worse as in?" Romanov's eyes narrowed as she yearned for an explanation from the doctor. We all were.

"_Netherworld_-worse, I'm afraid. Those things are what you call _darklings_ or what literature states as, _demons_," there was difficulty in her delivery of the label it was as if she also didn't believe the words that came out from her mouth.

"Wait a minute, did I just hear demons?" Stark was the first to show doubt. He spat out his remark like she spoke of blasphemy.

"You heard me Stark,"

Rogers stood from his seat and walked across the room, "What do you suggest we do?"

"_You…_ do nothing," Dr. Sinclair took the written reports and handed them to Fury, "Burn these and walk away. This matter isn't meant for you," she turned to face us, "any of you,"

Fury grabbed the file and crushed them into a jagged fold as his eye bore into the doctor's, "You expect us to do nothing after what we've shown you?" Nick was ablazed by her statement and dropped the papers on the table with his palm.

"I expect you to be wise," she cut him short, "The people who have tried to find a solution for the attacks all ended up dead and allying with me would place even more danger in your hands,"

"Oh come on!" Tony hit the table with his palms lifting the doctor and Fury's attention from each other, "You're asking Iron Man, two gods, star-spangled living legend and the..._Matrix_ cast to run away from this?" he shook his head frantically as he wiped his face in utter disappointment, "That is unacceptable,"

"This is no joke Stark, creating a connection with-" she stopped before she could finish the sentence it was as if she was halting herself from labeling her true form, "Just, trust me," she began to walk away from them when Fury exclaimed, "You can't handle them alone doctor! We're no…" Fury struggled for words to rebate that his statement was fully embroidered impatience, "…angels but we sure beat the crap out of those ETs, so unless you want to form clones of yourself and save the world, we're not going anywhere,"

"I don't want to force you to listen Mr. Fury,"

Fury nearly scowled at her but soon came to a calm. She was very insistent for us to withdraw from finding a solution however, none of us were in a hurry to go home, "Did you hear me doctor? Not. Going. Anywhere."

The doctor folded her arms and paced back to where we were all gathered, "Walk away," her tone was not forceful but rather pleading, "Pursue them and you'll all regret it,"

Nick was quick to answer, "Then join us. Or just tell us how the hell we face those things 'coz either way, we're going to do something," Fury's expression was more stern now, "Even if it means having to deal with it…_separately_,"

The doctor took a moment to think before she spoke. She eyed us one by one as if to assess our legitimacy, "The world you are about to enter will be a world you'd beg to stray from,"

Tony approached the doctor once again and held out his hand, "Then I guess, we'll have to decide that for ourselves,"

Dylan Sinclair shook Stark's hand as if consigned to an agreement of an alliance but clearly she was still doubtful. She shifted her direction to Nick Fury now, "Don't make me regret this Fury. That goes for all of you,"

Thor approached Stark and the doctor and placed a hand on each of their shoulders as he smiled. Of course he wanted to act all kingly and just, "We have a mutual goal, and we should have each others' word,"

Dylan nodded, "First lesson then gents, live like there's no tomorrow… Trust me, it'll make you live longer,"

* * *

I had spent the night pondering on the events that had occurred that afternoon. She was among us, the mysterious woman whom I grown quite fond of. In a rather, pleasurable yet unexplained fashion.

There were no traces of fear nor dissolution in her eyes, only a hint of worry. But the Earth needed her. _We needed her._ That's when I began to feel selfishness.

Here I was trapped in the very cell made for none other than that monster that they so fondly call, The Hulk. How my brother had agreed to keep me there was beyond my thoughts. Ever since I was transported to his beloved planet, my gauntlets have felt heavier than they did when I was in Asgard. I felt my magic slowly drift and even as I expected it, the pull gave me such discomfort than moving my wrists gave such a sting. They were all watching me again and so I forced myself to conceal the pain. I never wanted to look weak especially now that she was here.

"How long do you plan on keeping him in there?" I heard the voice of the doctor from a short distance. _So Fury's making sure that I won't be able to escape this time._

"Long enough to keep us all safe," his tone was direct making me harbor more anger towards him. I laugh at him on the inside though. I am rather enthused at how much he still feared my intellect.

"I don't exactly know what happened during the past but, you did say that he did find me,"

"Yeah well, we can't take any chances. For now, you just have to trust, _us,_" I heard Nick open the door, "We've prepared a room for you on upper wing. Just cross the hall and our agents will lead you to it,"

"Thank you,"

"No doctor, thank _you,"_

I heard a set of footsteps draw near.

"Oh and, best ignore the guy when you pass through here. He's got a talent for manipulation," Fury was always kind enough to address me with much accuracy, even as he left; I felt the tension build up around my cage.

My prison was still the same plain, well-lit and translucent barrier allowing me to watch as the doctor approached. She walked at a leisurely pace and had chosen to follow Nick's suggestion. Besides her bland look, she didn't give me much mind. I couldn't help but just stare at her as she walked away.

"Augh!" My attempt to loosen the gauntlets had left my hand with an ugly scratch. I gripped my wrist tightly and turned in my effort to shun away from showing discomfort. Of course, my reaction had caught her attention.

She walked briskly as she loomed towards my quarters,"Is something wrong?" I tilted my head sideways and shrugged, "It's nothing,"

"It doesn't look like nothing," she waited for a reply that never came, "are you injured?" _Was this woman really concerned?_

I stood, still with my right hand wound around my wrist but as I gripped it harder to stop from bleeding, the gauntlets had tightened and slowly burned through my skin making me howl in pain, "What's wrong?" she sounded a bit frantic but I had decided to keep it to myself. The bands were specifically made for me to contain my powers and now it seems to be giving me a taste of my past.

"Leave," It wasn't right for her to see me like this- a criminal tortured for his sins. It was so shameful and…weak.

The next moment I heard the glass open and close and her shadow emerged closer and closer, "Let me see," she tried to place a hand on my shoulder but I quickly deflected him making her raise her hands as if to say that she understood my urgent need for distance, "I'm sorry, I just want to help,"

My brows furrowed, "Why? You've heard Fury, aren't you afraid that this is just some ploy?" I did not hesitate to speak my mind at that moment. Her presence was a welcomed blur and all I wanted was to flee from this guilt, and yet she remained calm.

"If I was, I wouldn't be here," without asking for my permission, she pulled my arm and drew back my sleeve. It was the first time for any woman to take command of me but if there was any chance for an explanation of the nature of the gauntlets, I was willing to risk anything. Her fingers traced the wound but her touch was never heavy nor forceful. The feel of her was light and being at a close distance from her was a welcome sight. My temper lowered as she motioned for us to sit so she could take a closer look at my wound and oddly enough, I felt like a boy as I sat next to her. I couldn't keep my eyes off of her; she was just so…breathtaking.

"You've got a few burns and luckily, your cuts aren't that deep," She told how fortunate I was that she had just come from the hospital and it was quite surprising how she was carrying a small packet of bandages which she drew from the large pocket on her coat. I didn't speak and merely made small gestures. She had bandaged my wound slowly and carefully which made me tinge. When was done, she slowly let go of my hand and cautioned me to not move it until she had given me some medicine. Her gaze however was locked into my gauntlets, she was not fooled by their purpose and this had disturbed her, "Your gauntlets," I looked away now and decided to get all suspicion removed, "They're causing this," she said, waiting for my explanation. I sighed in defeat, "...my punishment," I corrected her.

She gave me a puzzled look, "I see…" She stood now and began to make her way, regrettably not prying on my past, "I'll send someone to bring you some medicine, although I'm not really sure if they'll work on Asgardian gods," She tried to make things a little lighter; I guess it was mostly for the pain. Before she exited the cell, I quickly stood, "Thank You,"

She gazed back at me and gave me a small smile as she left, her gesture gave me a calm that I couldn't help but feel pleased and grateful and that was when it struck me- I didn't feel the gauntlets' grip on me the moment she stepped inside my quarters and I do not believe it to be mere coincidence.

* * *

**AN: Thank you for reading Chapter 2, the hits and PMs are amazing! Hope you guys liked the update :) (forgive me if there are corrections, it's already Midnight here haha)**

**Dylan Sinclair (C) LVS**

**The Avengers (c) Marvel**

**'til the next update!**

**-LVS **


	3. Three: Welcome Party

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

_AN: My sincerest apologies for the late update and my heartfelt thanks to the responses, hits, PMs, alerts and faves for this fic. Thank you so much! I would also like to dedicate this chapter to my Marvel/DC buddy in real life Sam and my new friend, Cam, LovingBOBThePacific (check out her fics too, this kid is amazing!). Enjoy! -LVS_

* * *

** Three: Welcome Party**

* * *

LOKI

* * *

It was impossible to persuade my brother to let me join the conference. Every single one of us did not sleep well. Our thoughts were consumed by narrowing the range of explanations that the doctor could give us regarding those…_things_ and why their presence was so unprecedented. _It was a unanimous decision_, he said.

_I was outraged by his court-prancing. He didn't even have the courtesy to discuss it outside of my cell!_ But I did not allow myself to lose my privilege to be fully knowledgeable.

It was _I _who had told them about Dylan Sinclair. It was _I_ who found her. It was because of _me_ that they are even still _alive._

"Brother," Thor had walked briskly as he approached my cell, unsmiling yet satisfied. I did not turn to greet him, "Have you come to dispose of me now? I believe my business here is done as I have been nothing but _useful_," I let out an edge to my tone as I continued to sit and place attention on my healing wrist. She had sent me the medicine as she had promised and even though I knew that it would not affect me as much as expected of a human, I used it as instructed anyway. _I could not resist her instruction._ To my surprise, the ugly scars and burn marks began to fade. _If only my gauntlets would continue to feel weightless as they did that night._

"I understand that your upse-"

"Of course you do!" I hissed, obviously placing mockery in his sentiment._ How long did he think he could treat me like one of his subjects? _

He gritted his teeth, "There is a limit to the liberty you are given here. You know what you've done!"

I stood, still not facing him. The rage inside of me began to collect itself, I had no ill regrets towards my former goal, only my methods of achieving it was wrong, "Was it not _I_ who found the doctor?" There was a loud thud as Thor had punched the glass separating us causing a backlash of electrical charges to spark inside the cell. I heard my brother pant from containing his anger. My statement had insulted him, "You will watch through those monitors and be heard of no more," and with that said, my brother stomped away from my prison and set off for the conference.

I could no longer force Fury to grant me entrance, however, their word was kept and I was made fully informed through those science-made things they call digital screens. They were foolish to lock me out and think that they were more equipped to ask the right questions but it was more than just getting involved and made erudite. I longed to be in the midst of the doctor again, to test my theory in the least. The gauntlets still created a strange pull around my arm and if my theory is correct, the doctor may be able to unlock the shackles my father had claimed to have no key other than _'retribution at death.' _I would not submit myself to such torture. I knew there was a way and a reason. _For all of this._

Fury and the rest of the so called Avengers took no minute to waste and so did the doctor as everyone had entered the quarters promptly.

My brother cleared his throat, he was pacing back and forth as he listened in the doctor's explanation, "You've termed those creatures as _demons_, what exactly are they, these creatures?"

"Well," the doctor began, "They are as you hear and read in literature and folklore. Born out of tortured souls, inhabitants of the Netherworld, creatures of the dark to name a few descriptions,"

_Remnants of dark magic_, I thought and surely my brother had the same thoughts as I.

"So these demons, why are they showing up now?"

"Well Mr. Fury, they never left. They were merely waiting for the…opportune moment,"

Romanov's face fell, "For what? Vengeance?"

The doctor blinked, "More like a bounty," she jumped off her seat and stared outside the foyer, deep in thought.

"Sounds like a familiar story," Stark rolled his eyes.

"In any case, they're acting out. Fast, and so should we," Fury looked at the doctor now with much anticipation, clearly, there were a number of things needed to be explained.

Rogers sighed, "They're making a commotion on purpose. Clearly whatever or whoever they're after has mobilized as well. Am I right, doctor?" Dylan nodded once and took a deep breath. It was clear that she had anticipated the things that were happening.

Thor looked at both parties and furrowed his brows, "What you're saying is, this is all just some horse race?"

"And someone's already placing a bet against us unless we figure out whatever it is they're in such a hurry to find,"

The doctor turned around, "Don't worry agent Romanov, you won't have to look any further,"

"Ugh, enough with the cryptics please ladies?" Stark spoke with much impatience as he ruffled his hair.

As I pondered on their words, things were beginning to shed more light. There would be only one reason why the time warp had acted on one specific memory that night, _they were looking for her._

"It's because," the doctor's eyes narrowed and for a moment I saw her touch a glistening pendant that dangled below her throat. The pendant reminded me of the staff I once used to release some power from the Tesseract, "your horse is right here,"

Everyone was left in awe silence at her revelation and so as she made clear at the start that time was of the essence, she had broken their silence, "Don't get me wrong, I did try to warn you,"

Fury without any warning suddenly burst out in laughter leaving the others inside the room as well as myself in utter confusion, "Y-you're the moving target?" He pointed at the doctor as he held his laughter, "Of course you are!"

The doctor pursed her lips and turned to face Fury, "And I assume you had inkling as well, considering the fact that you took my blade among other things,"

"Standard procedure doc," Nick quipped, "So, _what _do they want from _you_?"

She shrugged, "That's what I want to find out. Honestly, there are a number of reasons I could think of and the only way to find out is to actually find who the alpha in this mess _is_,"

"Great, give us a list,"

The doctor looked at Tony Stark indifferently, "Nice of you to accurately assume the number of people after my head but I can't really say until I see a pattern,"

"Forgive me for interrupting," their attention shifted to the captain, "from what I understand by your statement, these attacks aren't out of the ordinary?"

"You see captain; demons are instinctively created to disrupt human peace however most of the time demonic energy is transferred to mortal souls thus; hypothetically making man the culprit. Their presence only conjures when portals are maneuvered for them to freely enter the Earth and they attack only when they feel threatened,"

She paused to think about the best way to relay the information. Clearly, the things she had said were beyond human possibility. It was like she was quoting at some cult novel adults would tell their children as a sort of disciplinary action, "Basically, those things go their own way unless something or someone purposely gives them the go signal,"

Fury massaged his temple, "Well this is a lot to take in one sitting,"

Romanov crossed her arms and gaped, "So… they're just basically doing this for survival right? Their hunting, I mean?"

The doctor nodded, "Well, demons usually feed on the remains if that's what you're asking but, the most valuable thing they could get from humans is of course, a soul. The more souls they collect, the more they get stronger,"

Stark creased his brows and jabbed the table, "Whoa whoa whoa! Hold up there," he pointed at the doctor, "So they're reaping the Earth not just to get your attention but to get stronger and _then _get to you?"

"Seems that way,"

My brother broke his silence now, "Why do they see you as a threat? What is it that you possess for them to target you?"

The doctor scanned the room and for a moment fiddled on the long chain around her neck, "The demon folk are a very secretive and thieving kind and the lords who govern them don't appreciate people who get in their way. And being among the few who can actually slay those things makes me part of their bounty list but of course there's always something more than just taking me off their radar,"

"And that's where we enter," Agent Barton took a stance and smiled at the doctor as if reaffirming their right to know her trade, "You are going to tell us how you're able to you know…" Barton positioned his fingers like that of a gun and imitated its sound. There was a rustle from the outside that for a moment, my attention shifted from the screen to the sides of my cell. The temperature had dropped drastically that I could actually see my breath. I had thought that is was just the doctor's explanation that made me quiver but the men outside responsible for watching me were disturbed as well. The cold had equipped itself with a strange and eerie atmosphere that I knew instantly that it was not merely caused by some technological malfunction. To relieve my suspicion from experiencing the isolated climate, I had directed my attention to the screen again and I was right. Some of them unconsciously began clutching themselves to guard from the cold that they kept on fidgeting and breathing slower as they continued their discussion.

Stark kept pacing back and forth the room with his furrowed brows eyeing one person to another. He was fighting himself from disrupting the conversation but it was odd that they were placing a blind eye to the situation at hand. Stark exhaled loudly and dropped his hands to his lap, "IT'S FREEZING!" Nick Fury had snarled at his rudeness, "I am soooo sorry but, I mean, c'mon! Am I the only one with the intolerance for the ice age?"

Romanov rolled her eyes at Stark and volunteered to check the status of the moving aircraft base of S.H.I.E.L.D. As expected, there were no disruptions in the system and the odd cold was caused by something else. The Earth's weather was no different from any other sunny day and to be feeling the icy prick of what I could only think appropriate of the description…supernatural.

"Everything's fine. Must be glitch or something," The doctor closed her eyes intently and bit her tongue at Romanov's statement but before she could say anything else, the whole base began to tilt leaving us all unbalanced, "The heck was that?"

The doctor quickly grabbed something from her coat pocket- a small piece of red parchment with which she scribbled some unknown charting. She held out the paper, "Last chance to walk away people," the rest looked at her in puzzlement but none of them had taken up her offer, "Don't blink!" She raised a brow and shook her head as she threw the talisman which folded out into flames. _She was regretting her actions. _

There was a loud clang as the paper had burnt into ashes and I felt myself inclined to assess my surroundings for any signs of change. Nothing looked much different than before but there were a series of disturbing noises filling up the whole craft. There was a hoard of running around the base and yet they paid no mind to my presence. I was looking for a way around the cell as I struggled to keep balance. The cold that crept from my back was gradually getting worse and I was sure that there was more to come. _I have to get out of this cell._

I heard my brother's voice, "We're under siege!"

Nick Fury was quick to act and had deployed his men to check the hangar and secure all entrances. He turned to the doctor now who was already making quick assessments, "Doctor? Care to explain what's happening?"

The doctor merely glanced at Fury and the others waiting for her explanation but she took prerogative to rush towards the exit, "Your welcome party," she said at last and with that she motioned for everyone to mobilize. We were under attack and I was still left, helpless and foreboding.

* * *

There was nothing left to watch on the screen and I had jousted towards the glass door nearest the control panel and yet there were no guards who cared enough to make the situation known to me. But I wasn't alone for long. The cell walls had began to coat in frosty mirrors and the light illuminating the space had began to dim and that was when I braced myself. My shadow had elongated and abruptly began to distort into harsh lines. A set of red jagged eyes and sharp claws had greeted me as an arachnid-like creature formed from my shadows. _A demon_. I thought, finally succumbing to the fact that her short ritual was to grant us the _sight_ to actually see those dreadful things.

The demon stood before me, hissing and on guard as was I and it only took a second for it to hesitate and lunge at me. I had managed to deflect its attack by using an apparition of myself as I swerved to the other side of my cell. The demon was hurt by the impact of the hard glass that it screeched as it fell. The security system of my cell began to surface as some parts of the floor opened to reveal the death that awaited my fall. The more pressure placed on the glass, the more it was forcing the cell to eject itself. I had to be careful but how could I even defend myself if I could hardly move?

The claws of the creature began digging into the floor creating a web of cracks. The thing was trying to hoist itself from its hard fall and I took no dull moment to rest and thought of my next move. I was unarmed save for the little magic that I withheld for the sake of deflecting the pain on my wrists but I was always swift. All I had to do was to use my speed and outwit the damn thing. I slowly moved my feet backward as the demon's pincers started clacking as it crawled towards me. _It's going to tackle. _Its red eyes glowed harshly as it came towards me, closer and closer and then that's when I was left with no more room to hide. The circular structure of the glass prison has left me with no option but to anticipate its attack and lucky for me, the creature only had a few tricks to show. The demon had pushed itself from the other side of the room and directed its landing on top of me, I was quick to stride backwards and lifted myself from the floor and managed to land a hard blow on the side of its head with my arm. The monster backed away slightly as one of its seven eyes had bled out due to the weight of my gauntlets. I personally didn't feel the enchantment's pull but as the demon's blood tinted the side of it; the small inscriptions coating the gauntlets began to glow. _So these things really do more harm than good._ Lucky for me, my punishment worked for my favor that moment. The black mist surrounding my cell began to fade but the demon wasn't about to give up so easily. I took the initiative and grabbed the demon by its head and landed another blow, this time its head cracked in half and it wasn't long until the demon's eyes dimmed and it stopped moving. It took a lot of energy for me to work with the magic that was holding me back but I had done it.

There was a small rustle from the other side of my cell and suddenly, the glass door had began to open. My brother had opened my cell and gave me a condescending look as I wiped off the blood in my hands, panting, "It's not going to stay dead for long. We must go. It's time to prove the worth of your words brother," Thor said no more as he had rushed upwards the floating headquarters with Mjolnir in hand and there I was, set free, undoubted and confused.

* * *

The hangar was covered in grey mist and I could only make-out the silhouettes of Fury, Rogers and Barton. Rogers was flinging his shield at the demons as Fury ordered his men to stand ground and keep a safe distance from those things. It was difficult for his men to brace themselves as not all of them could see what was going to attack them.

"It's no use! I'm almost out of ammo here sir," Barton's voice lifted from the fog and I could only assume that he was on top of the tanks set on the hangar. My brother handed me the throwing-pikes I am usually equipped with and gave me a nod which I in turned gestured. He spoke in all seriousness, "We have to try!"

Fury fired three shots from his gun at two demons without avail and I had joined in luring the things at close proximity from our position. It was hard to see from the mist and communication was even harder with all the heavy screeching the things were so fond of doing.

"Nick!" It was the doctor's voice from which sprang from Fury's communication device, "We're cleared, and I'm on my way up!" Fury flicked his phone open as he fired a few shots at the demons before he spoke, "'Bout time doc! We're code blue-ing here!"

There was a short buzzing from the other side of the phone, "Just get my blade!"

"You got that Romanov?" Nick had pressed something inside his collar. Another minute communication device he used to contact the others in situations like this, "Copy, sir! And if I didn't say it yet, you chose a great time to examine her dagger,"

Fury unloaded his gun and replaced the shells, "Yeah, yeah, just get here before the doctor does," A loud noise chimed as heavy pieces of metal came flying from out of nowhere. It was the door that had blasted open carrying with it a blinded demon writhing in pain, the doctor came running outside the door, hair tousled and face hardened, "Fury!" She had yelled as two of those things came rushing towards the S.H.I.E.L.D boss. Fury's gun flung out of his hands as one of the demon's claws swatted his arm, Fury kept his balance and managed to push the demon out of his way as he ran to grab his gun but he was not fast enough and I had no choice but to rid him from one of his foes by quickly throwing one of my blades and successfully boring it directly in between its eyes. Fury have me a hesitant look as he nodded as if to thank me and quickly backed out of his way and proceeded with aiding Hawkeye. I took a few glimpses of the doctor in action. She moved as if she were dancing with those demons in some ritualistic waltz that she didn't even need assistance from any of us. It was not that the demons were much of an adversary, what bothered us more was the fact that they kept on regenerating.

The temperature kept on lowering as time passed and the number of demons grew rapidly and to make things worse a number of those demons had fused into a giant hydra-like beast as it trampled upon a few S.H.I.E.L.D guards. The transition was fast and the pull of demonic energy from the fusion made it more difficult for us to resist the gravitational shift. Barton's arrows and Rogers' shield had barely scraped the creature and instead made the thing angrier.

The doctor and Nick began to slowly back away from the monster, "Nick,"

A sweat dropped from the side of Fury's face, "Romanov, where are you?"

The behemoth roared as let out a gush of icy breath, "Give the _Nephilim_ to me Morrtttaallllssssss…"

"Was it just me or did that think just talk?" Stark came flying in as he took a moment to observe the creature. Stark's palm radiated with white light, "Gotta shut you up now fella," Stark was about to fire at the monster when it jumped and swerved towards him and knocking him down with the weight of its tail. Tony's fall created a huge crater on the aircraft-base, the light from Iron Man's eyes flicked, "I-I'm fine," he lifted his finger to point at the demon boss, "Get 'im for me, will ya Cap?"

"You fools! Your artillery will not work against me!"

Thor didn't wait for the thing to strike and instead strode towards the demon with Mjolnir in hand. The lightning emanated from the silver of the hammer that a harsh light surrounded us when my brother pounded on the beast. The demon stumbled and wailed as it withdrew a few steps, Mjolnir successfully wounded it. Just not quite enough.

"You scum!" The demon was laughing horridly now and I began to notice the demon's tattered skin began to stitch itself back to normal and as it was about to breathe out another gush of its ice-breath, I rushed to my brother's side and pushed him away. The frost had pierced my skin forcing the Laufey lineage to surface momentarily. I did not feel pain and instead was able to absorb the energy within me, "Go! Run you fools!"

Fury eyed the doctor now, "Doctor, any ideas?"

"Just one," The doctor kept her eye on the large beast as the rest of us fought off its spawn. Romanov came running with the blade in her hand but was caught out of breath and stunned by the demon, "Oh my…"

The demon roared in sinister laughter once more as it summoned more demon-spawn, "You are no match compared to my children! You risk more lives Nephilim! Be it your choice!" The demon's eyes burned a grim red and the spikes on its skin grew longer and sharper, it was ready to fire at us again and this time, I might not be able to push everyone out of the way. It was rushing towards us and we were all kept preoccupied by the arachnoid demons, basically leaving us defenseless. I saw something dash in my peripheral vision directing itself at the monsters,

"Doc, you gotta get away!" the Captain ran after her but she was too fast for any of us to follow. Romanov began climbing the tanks where the doctor was headed, still with the blade in her hand. The monster's mouth slowly opened and we could all see spectrums of light forming in its tongue.

"Dylan!" Natasha threw the blade in such a high trajectory that the doctor had to literally step on the minor demons to hoist herself upwards. She had managed to catch the dagger with her right hand. She kept on running towards the thing but something in her demeanor changed. Her eyes grew sharp and glinted with the same glow I saw from the storm.

"Neeeeeppphhiilllimmmmmmmmmmmm!" The demon had released a cosmic ball of frost directly at her making us all rush out to help her dodge the blow but our efforts was of no avail and she kept on running towards it anyway. The demon's blow was so sudden that the light had momentarily blinded us but what happened next was much more of a surprise than the doctor's bravery. Dylan had slashed through the ball of demonic energy and it dispersed with remnants flying in all places. But she was, unharmed, "Seed of Raziel!" The demon's clawed palm came crashing to the position where the doctor stood as she deflected his blow. She flung herself out of the way and was able to grab a spike on the demon's forearm to keep herself from falling. This enraged the demon more, commanding its spawn to attack her.

Barton quickly struck some of the demons out of her way and we had mobilized ourselves to keep her path clean. She was aiming for its head and as we concluded, it was only her blade that could put an end to this mess.

"We have to get rid of it soon! The engine's icing up! Not to mention damage control, hellooooooooo!" Stark had kept himself busy with luring the demons towards the ledge of the base. The doctor kept striding upwards the demon's body while she fought off some of its spawn with her blade and as predicted, the demons that she had killed did not resurrect. The behemoth was threatened by her presence that it kept on moving to shake the doctor off.

There was a loud ringing that echoed along with the red flares of light than had annoyed the lot of the demon-spawn, "The whole place is crashing!" Romanov yelled as she fired at the demons nearest Barton.

Fury turned to the doctor again, "Doc!"

"Working on it!" she responded without glancing.

The beast let its tongue slither out as it continued to graze the doctor, "You ally with these fools Nephilim? Pitiful of you to think they could protect you! The humans will hold you bounty once they've tasted the worth of your blood! However," The monster lifted itself from the ground making the craft tilt and us unbalanced, "Not until I taste it first!" The doctor lost grip of the monster's neck and it landed free of her. But before the monster could prepare himself for another bout, the doctor fell gracefully down the open sky with the dagger snug at her right hand. Stark and Rogers had prepared themselves to assist her fall as the captain positioned his shield for her to use as a spring. Tony Stark then literally gave her another boost as she was left in mid-air, where below her; the monster's mouth awaited her fall. She had shifted the position of her hold on the dagger and in a blink moved in instantaneous speed as she dug the blade at the beast's throat leaving it no space to cry out before it died. The monster quickly turned into ash and faded into the closing portal along with its minions, leaving a loud clang of the blade boring the surface of S.H.I.E.L.D's moving head quarters. The temperature began to shift and little by little the mist began to fade out and reveal the doctor behind the silhouette of a fierce warrior kneeling with her blade astride.

"Wohohoa!," Tony Stark had perched beside Barton and the others without his helmet as the rest of us shifted attention from the doctor to him, "Buffy-shit just got real!" The rest of us eyed him oddly as the doctor fixed herself up. Tony blinked and swallowed to clear his throat, "Well...," he gazed at the each of them and looked down as he mumbled, "…that was awkward,"

Silence had followed Stark's statements as we all took a moment to let the events that had occurred sink in. I could not help but stare at her. I was in awe but I was not quite sure if I had felt intimidation or admiration. Still, questions had never failed to linger in our thoughts, for one such as I to experience relief again from the shackles on my wrists merely caused by her presence, the answers I've yet to gain seemed like a vice, needed to be satiated all too soon.

* * *

**AN: Thank you for reading! Clarity regarding a number of things (Yeah the Nephilim thing and all) will be made in the succeeding chapters and yes, prepare for some fluff and what not. The Netherworld literature is based on some readings I had from the past. Feel free to critique!**

**Dylan Sinclair (C) LVS**

**The Avengers (c) Marvel**

**'til the next update!**

**-LVS **


	4. Four: Visitor

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

**Four: Visitor**

* * *

LOKI

* * *

For the first time since I stepped on Earth, I was finally given a decent place to call my own quarters. Of course, it had only become possible since the glass prison wasn't much at working capacity due to the attack. It wasn't at all different from being treated like a convict what with all the guards outside my room and the gauntlets on my wrist weighing me down by the hour; however, I was given more privacy. The prison wards of Asgard were of a very different kind. Compared to the treatment I had received on Earth, imprisonment here was of no heavy treason. I have seen guards sully their broken blades into the sides of the Asgardian dungeons, one could even barely sit on one's cage let alone find a comfortable position, enough to beat the limping as time passed.

Luckily, I was not at Asgard and practically saving Fury's life had also given me the privilege to get more involved with the situation at hand and even if most of them still regarded me as a threat, I couldn't risk my chances of being left astray when clearly my presence was needed.

I sat atop of the bed they had provided me with my legs outstretched and straightened and found myself in deep contemplation as I tried to trace the markings around my wrists where my cuts began to heal. They were very strange. The lines were not of an Asgardian sort nor were they the universal text of the humans. The markings looked like minute and twisted lining the runes created were indistinguishable with the curvature of a combination of linguistics. As I had recounedt my confrontation with the demon and how my enchanted shackles had reacted towards the thing, I am reminded at how the markings rapidly embedded around the hard metal. No, not embedded, more like melted or…drilled in fire which made me wonder where the Asgardian-smith had gotten the material to make it from.

It was not like I had much ill feelings towards my adoptive father, however, I would not think that he had it in his heart to sentence me to such a slow death as torture. I was also beginning to doubt if he had knowledge about the its very nature and if he did, why would he chose such intrepid materials to punish a son he claimed as his own? _Because I am not his son._

My concentration was torn. I had to think about the demon attacks, the vision and how it all ties down to the doctor and at the same time, find an answer to the poison behind the chains. _Maybe it really was fate that brought this untimely reunion or maybe I am just another fool, left to hope for something that will never come. _The links around my wrists prick my skin like searing irons. I bite my lip to help myself from letting out a ghastly yell of pain. I would've given anything to keep my mind out of it but I would not have such chance.

Stark and Fury had utilized the rest of day by restoring the moving base into stable ground. The eerie frost unlike Jotunheim's own and the weight of the demons had caused relatively much damage that it was imperative for them to initiate the recovery for us to sustain our flight.

Romanov and Barton were ordered to take command of maneuvering the craft while my brother had set off with Agent Hill to contact his Jane and see to her safety. _Typical of him. _Thor was always attached to things. _His throne. His honor. His hammer. His control. His possessions._ He always kept them near and grounded, despite the consequences. I should find it most admirable and yet, I don't exactly agree with this methods.

It was no surprise for the doctor to take no minute to waste and volunteered to see to the state of the men injured during the attack, of course, the patrioticity of the moment could not escape Rogers as he had volunteered to assist her. I wouldn't be surprised if he felt an unmistakable attraction to Dylan Sinclair. Her physicality would give any man the inclination to make second looks however, there was always something more to her than meets the eye._ Something pleasing and…fearsome at the same time. _

I've been meaning to talk to the doctor regarding the effect that the demons had endured from the gauntlets and how she had affected _me _whenever she was within my presence. But how was that even remotely possible when things were just taking place all too fast and growing more complex?

The doctor…I hardly say her name. Whenever I try, my mouth fills up with a sweet and intoxicative mixture of pain and delight. It was as if I was not laudable enough to utter the words of the woman clearly beyond any of our powers…Then again, it is unlike me to feel neither intimidation nor inferiority.

A hand raked through my hair as a habit whenever I was deep in thought. The weight of the enchantments grew heavier that the small gesture made me cringe. But my meditation was soon brought to a pause when I heard a knock from my door. It was odd. No one, not even my brother took time in the evening to see me for whatever reason. He was of a forthcoming-sort, but on Midgard, he would not speak long with me. I didn't stand to open the door and instead waited for another knock to confirm what I had heard. It came unfortunately, and this time the knock was blended with a voice, "Ma'am, I don't advise you to-" it was one of those guards talking to the my visitor. _Had they sent Romanov or Hill for an interrogation?_

The voice answered in a rather authoritative manner, "I believe that's mine to decide. Thank you, I can take it from here," before I could rouse, the door had slid open revealing a lady wearing a long-sleeved navy top and dark trousers that matched her boots.

It was the doctor at the door. She had changed from her bloody clothing and let her hair land loose on her shoulders. She had her back to me as she dismissed the guards and as if my manners had given me a kick, I swung my legs from the side of my bed and straightened up. The door clicked to a close and she looked at me now with calm eyes, "Sorry, I don't mean to disturb you,"

I took a few steps towards her and inhaled, "N-not at all, please," my mother had always taught Thor and I to behave like proper courtsmen especially in front of noble women and the times when we were to act all highborn and well-bred, felt exactly like them whenever she was present.

She approached me now, slowly and cautiously and I in turn gestured for one of the seats made available in my quarters on which she politely declined. I had to be careful with the way I acted, she was always calculative and observant and a woman of such mystique could create an impression of trust if I could play my cards right.

I took a moment to glance at her and made the effort to relieve ourselves from all informal arrangements, "What brings you here, doctor? If I may be so blunt to ask?" my tone lifted itself from impatience and shifted to utter curiosity.

She gave me a rueful smile as she let her lashes caress her cheeks as she looked down for a moment, "I just came to check on you," her tone was steady. She walked towards me now and positioned herself only a few feet away from where I stood. She was shorter than I was and I had rewarded myself with the delight of towering over her as it gave me an advantage to observe her more closely without any suspicion. I merely shrugged, "I am doing well," she was looking at me directly now, "Surprisingly your medicine worked," her eyes flicked a tad bit wider at my statement, "I-I didn't mean any disrespect," I honestly didn't. _What was this unseen force making me stumble for words? I found myself rather articulate, afterall._

Her mouth slightly curved to the side, swiftly revealing a sincere beam of interest as she nodded, "None taken," her eyes traveled from my hands to my face,"Can I see?" I didn't argue with her request and gladly held out my wrists. She lifted my wrists closer and intently gazed at them and I was left out of words as I felt her delicate fingers trace around my wounds. _I can hardly feel the gauntlets_, "That's strange…" She lifted her chin up but still kept her hand entwined around my hand, "Do you still feel any pain?" I shook my head and continued to stare. At the moment, I really didn't feel anything but still the brooding feeling from within myself couldn't hide much longer.

True enough, the doctor yielded the same unsteady façade, "They have traces of demon blood on the sides," I was horrified by her observation as she tilted my wrists. I hadn't the nerve to clean off my dirtied hands, "Did you-?" She looked doleful which I rewarded with a chagrin.

The doctor didn't need to finish the sentence for me to narrate what had happened, "I was attacked inside my…" I searched for a more appropriate word but I couldn't find anything within my vocabulary to make light of it, "…cell, a demon had lunged itself at me and by some…weird force, the shackles had reacted against its skin and melted through its skull,"

The doctor pursed her lips, "And these markings?" she lifted one of my hands where the demon blood had stained the shackles and pointed towards the strange markings that had glowed and embedded itself in the metal. The tips of her fingers brushed against the sides of my palm and for a minute I felt myself slightly quiver.

I blinked a number of times as I tried to wipe off the juvenile look I etched, "They appeared after I hit the demon, are they familiar to you?" She let go of my hands now and looked furtively at my eyes momentarily and took a deep breath, "The text is written in what is called _Enochian_ and based on what you told me, I think they're some sort of protective seal…" she paused to edit, "Where _did_ your gauntlets come from?" the blue in her eyes looked expectantly up at my green,

"I haven't the idea where, you had better ask my brother," I said as one of my hands slightly clasped hers. She didn't seem to mind the minor gesture but I had retreated the motion anyway fearing that she would feel discomfort at such. I didn't even know why I've done it. _What was I even trying to achieve?_

"I see." She gestured for us to sit,

I cleared my throat, "Are you familiar with these _Enochian_ writings?"

She gave me a hesitant nod, "Quite, but I believe I will tell you more about it once everyone is present. It seems that the material used for forging those things on your wrists may not be coincidental," She gave me a look of concern and as much as I had wanted to lift her from any concerning thoughts, I knew I had to provide her with more of my experiences if I wanted her to help me.

"There is also one other thing," her worried expression faded into coyness as she awaited my speech, "Usually," I had flexed my hands and opened my palms to soothe it from the pain from the weight earlier on, "The gauntlets would literally weigh me down, but for some reason whenever you are within close proximity…" I placed my eyes on her to assess how she was reacting to my revelation but no matter how absurd my explanation was, she remained composed and unjudging, "I felt an instant relief… it was as if you were saving me from such pain that I-" I had stopped myself from speaking as I saw her mouth slightly part, "Forgive me, I've spoken too much,"

She gave me a wry smile as her blue eyes turned glassy in the light of the room that I was taken aback, "Asgardian men really _do_ have a way with words," she quipped and for the first time in the longest time since I've been in close presence with a woman, I felt myself flush.

I lifted my stare and couldn't bring myself to look at her expectant face, "I didn't mean it as a flirtation or-"her brows shot upward and her smile grew wider, "I was merely stating the fact of my experience…" I heard my own voice fade as she had shifted her sitting position into a cross and her smile turned to a grin, "Well in any case, I'm glad I could be of help but honestly, I don't really know how to explain what you just said,"

A crease had formed at the side of my mouth as I tried to hide a smile. I was not used to conversations like this and I was feeling more and more out of character the longer she had stayed inside my quarters. _What was happening to me?_

She cleared her throat, "Fury said, you found me?"

"Yes,"

Her hands rested on the table set between us now, inches away from my own, "How exactly did you-?" she squinted her eyes at me.

"I honestly have no definitive explanation for that," she blinked and let out a breath, "Long story, I get it. But in any case, I guess I was really meant to meet you in the long haul, considering," she tapped lightly on one side of my wrist, "Considering," I dourly said.

There was a short silence as she eyed the inscriptions on my wrists, "Did my brother send you?" I had finally asked.

"Your brother has mentioned to me your…troubles but, I came here out of my own will if that makes the slightest sense?" She began to fix herself for her leave now, "Were you expecting him to talk to me about your situation?"

"No- I hadn't really had the chance to discuss this with him. As you can observe, we are not at the best of terms,"

She tucked her hair behind her ear and cocked her head to the side, "He cares about you,"

"Apparently not enough…if my brother didn't send you then-"

She cut me off, "Then what?"

"Then… why are you trying to help me?" my voice was half-pleading half-stern.

The doctor gave me a look of heed, "You think I'm trying to help _you_?"

My hand clasped into a balled wrist, "_Are_ you?"

She sighed in defeat, "I guess so, and I guess, I am what you call a...firm believer of second chances. It's written in my oath," I closed my eyes momentarily and struggled to find the words to repay her kindness but I could not find the courage within me to coat my formality with sweetness. She turned to make her way towards the door and I blindly went to her side to escort her out, "I believe you can manage a few hours without my presence to ease your pain? After all, they _were_ made for a purpose, if I may say so," her statement did not offend me for they were just and having knowledge of the events that had transpired in the past, I too couldn't blame the price I had to pay for the lives that I took.

The door had slid open, "Thank you, doctor," I tried to sound as sincere as I could manage even if that was really what I had wanted to project. She gave me a small nod and looked at me in kind respects as she let out a scoff, "Don't thank me yet,"

The lights within the corridors began to flicker and a rustling sound from the engines had invaded the silence as the craft slightly tilted. Unaware of such occurrence, the doctor slightly lost her balance and budged on her side right at me. I was able to lean against the door as I caught her shoulders in time before she could fall. Surprised by the incident, I froze as she began to regain her balance, "Sorry! 'lil malfunction!" It was Stark's voice that echoed. The doctor merely rolled her eyes and for a moment ducked her head just below my chin and laughed, "Well that was unexpected," she quipped as I let go.

"If there's anything-" she shook her head and crossed her arms at her back, "Don't get too comfortable, I still have my eye on _you_," she made a small distance between us and eyed me sinisterly.

I snarled, "And I, you" For a moment I was lost in the tranquility of her eyes that I could no longer mutter anything sensical to say to her. It reminded me of the free galaxy lightyears away from Asgard. Of a beautiful abyss.

Noticing this, the doctor positioned herself sideways and signaled some guards to take her place, "Goodnight Loki," here voice was serene.

_And I had thought that all this time she had known me only as the rebellious Asgardian god._

* * *

The doctor had felt restless for what was the remainder of the day that she could not bring herself to retreat to her quarters. She was left wandering around the wreckage of the craft on her own, pacing back and forth specifically at the foyer of the control room.

She was overwhelmed by the complexity of the situation especially now that Loki's gauntlets were products of the world she had feared would be made publicly known. She knew the language inscribed in his gauntlets, it was the language of her people and it was strange that another realm called _Asgard_ could ever possess such forbidden artifacts that her lineage were sworn to keep hidden. The demons words felt like fire that fueled her anxiety. _It talked about her blood… her life, her worth and her fate that only at present, she was to keep as burden._ If the truth about her identity was revealed, the Earth would change drastically and she could not fathom living in a crumbling world caused by her own ill fate.

"What is the matter little dove?" the doctor's pacing had halted as a deep, eerie voice crept from behind her neck. She had recognized the cold atmosphere instantly that her hand went straight to the hilt on her leg where her blade rested, "Don't worry,_ Nephilim_, it's just you and me tonight…"

"Show yourself demon," she hissed in a low tone as she made her way down the steps of the foyer, eyeing every corner of the pad intently. The demon's thunderous laughter kept ringing in her ears but she was unnerved and kept calm following in her minds-eye the waves of demonic energy only to lead her at the entrance of the infamous cage of the Hulk and the Asgardian menace. Inside the cell stood a young looking man in a clean gray suit and gelled salt and pepper hair. He gave the doctor a wide, menacing smile as his glassy raven eyes squinted at her, "Hello doctor, I don't believe we've met, my name is Mephistophiles," the doctor was about to charge at the strange man but was halted by his signal, "ah-ah doctor, don't you want to know why I'm here and what I came to do?" he sneered.

The doctor's eyes narrowed, "Demons are all the same to me, and I know _exactly_ why you are here!"

Mephistophiles used his index finger and thumb to wipe the sides of his mouth, "Ah yes… of course you do," he laughed, "Then I guess we should just get straight to business then. Shall we?" the demon had gestured for her to approach.

"And what makes you think that I'll come with you? Considering the fact that you put up my bounty?"

The demon took a step forward, "Me?" the demon said in a sarcastic tune, "No-No. I am but _one_ of those who piqued interest in _your_ bounty." The raven-demon clasped his hands in a tight knot, "The man behind it, well… I can't have him have you now can I?"

"Is this some sort of joke?" She gripped her dagger tightly now, "What are you gonna do? Try and kill me?" she challenged.

He titled his head sideways and let out his tongue in between his devilish rgin, "I'm just here to eliminate those in my way and that includes your new set of friends here and maybe _then_, I could dispose of you well at least until I get you to do a little something for me," he laughed, "Afterall, Earth's gonna need a savior once well, for lack of a better phrase, _Hell hath no_ purges all humans,"

The doctor gritted her teeth, "Or I could just dispose of _you_," in an instant she had moved in an untraceable speed as she lifted her hand and directed her dagger towards the demon. Her blade was inches away from his heart when he had dispersed into a black cloud and the cell opened and welcomed her fall. The doctor reflexively readied her position as she landed with one knee planted firmly on the ground and her hand positioned in support.

"Ahahahahahahaha! What is this love for mortals that you and your friends share? _We_ are the better race and cohabitating with our kind could save more lives than you know," Dylan swerved and found the demon reforming in front of her, "Don't worry seed of _Raziel_, we'll have plenty of time to dance later. For now, let me give you a little advice, careful who _you_ trust doctor. A woman of your _stature_ shouldn't fall captive into the wrong hands,"

"Am I supposed to swoon over your sentiment?" her voice was filled with steel now.

The demon repeatedly clicked his tongue and showed his sharp teeth, "Actually, I expect you to swoon over _our _sentiment. Believe me Sinclair, if I can't have you, others will…and for an old friend who possesses the _scryer_ finding you wouldn't be much of a chore," The doctor took the dagger and quickly threw it towards the demon. The demon had turn to mist and disappeared, "See you in England,"

The blade dropped and created a loud noise like falling metal. The doctor's vision was momentarily blurred by the temper she was withholding but as her sight began to clear, the silhouette of Nick Fury began to surface, "I think it's about time you tell us your story doctor," she began to calm as she caught her breath but didn't look at the S.H.I.E.L.D boss.

Dylan's hand ran through her hair out of frustration and marched towards her blade, "First, we have to pay someone a visit,"

Fury gave the doctor a look of disdain, "A friend of yours?"

Her fingers went idly towards her neck and the teardrop jewel shone as it caught light, "Not quite,"

* * *

**AN: That concludes this chapter. Confused? Killed by suspense? Tell me what you think and leave me a review Thank you for reading, I intentionally wrote a longer chapter since I'll be back for my senior year at University starting next week so, I can't say that I'll update in the same pace as the first three chapters. I had to cut this chapter, it was originally around 20+ pages, but I can't have you scrolling with tired eyes now can I? So yeah, expect an update early next week or maybe even this weekend. (Also, yes, the double line at the end of Loki and Dylan's conversation is indicative of a third person narrative, but you guys know that already).**

**I have based Mephistophiles on Goethe's work (try and search about it yourself, I can't tell you much specifics since it will ruin the story but hey, guess away!).**

**Oh yeah, as for a cover-photo or whatnot for the story, I am currently working on it and thinking of commissioning an artist or something, anyway, thanks for your time and please do drop me a review!**

**And as always thank you to Tom H.'s dazzling voice narrating the whole story inside my head XD**

**Much love,**

**LVS**

**Dylan Sinclair © LVS**

**The Avengers © Marvel**


	5. Five: Weighed and Measured

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

_Author's Note: As promised this chapter is dedicated to MagicalElf73. Thank you for your kindest reviews! Also, I would like to acknowledge the DA artist- Kibbitzer (link on my profile) for the cover-art of this fic. The portrayal of Loki is done so well and hopefully, I could get Dylan in the picture next time. Enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

**Five: Weighed and Measured**

* * *

LOKI

* * *

"Where to doc?" Hill was tasked to take command of the moving base that day as Fury would be joining our little conference.

"Mortlake," she said stiffly.

"What's in Mortlake doctor?" Nick was in no mood to play the mystery game as was everyone else. News about interested 'investors' of the doctors' specified skills meant a broadening of our problems and as time went by, the demon attacks from all parts of the globe were getting more difficult to contain.

"A man, clearly involved in our demon situation,"

"And you believe this man has this _Nephilim_ that the demon wanted," my brother interjected.

"Not exactly, however, he has what is called an obsidian scryer; a sphere believed to posses the power to call upon the _Nephilim_,"

"I don't understand," Romanov muttered, looking from Fury to Barton.

The doctor continued, "Nephilim is not an object agent Romanov, it is a race, you can look it up," Dylan's face was brimming with a hesitant security as she pondered on the right words to describe to us what were dealing with and by the looks of it, the information she was sharing wasn't something she had been comfortable with.

Romanov quickly turned to one of the computers and searched for some local lore regarding the Nephilim, "Says here that Nephilim is connected to some biblical folklore? Etymologically meaning fallen warrior-?" her words trailed off as she scanned the monitor.

The doctor inhaled deeply, dodging each of our stares, "There's no point in keeping you all out of the loop now so I might as well tell you everything,"

The Captain gave the doctor a reassuring look before I did but I decided to keep my silence and listen in. The doctor's face began to drop, "Ma'am, we have time before we reach our destination, please, enlighten us,"

Stark scoffed at the Rogers' statement and spoke in a low voice, "…enlighten us," he move to the captain's side and whispered to his ear, "is that a pick-up line you used in the 70s?" The captain snarled at Stark but paid him no other mind. His idiotic jokes were completely out of place no matter how juvenile Rogers' statement sounded.

"You're all gonna think I'm crazy but here goes," the doctor circled us and continued, "The Nephilim's existence dates back after Morningstar's rebellion from Heaven where according to a kept legend, God had ordered his archangels to create an army to live among the mortals until the end of time. Now, the army that the archangel Michael brought forth the earth had to be of the blood broken from the holy and the mundane,"

Stark's jaw dropped, "We're really talking about-?" Romanov shot him an unenthused looked, signaling him to stop his banter.

Fury scratched his head, "So basically…half-mortal, half-angel?" his tone was uneven.

For a moment, the doctor had glanced at my direction. It made me quiver and curious about how she was feeling at the moment. Her eyes glinted with a tint of sadness, "Yes. But the existence of such children was kept a secret from the lesser angels and the demons at that, since, the creation of the race was only made possible by the assistance of a great demon lord who had rebelled against his own race. The demon lord had developed a fondness for the humans that he had allied with an archangel to create a barrier from the demon and human realm,"

"It was believed that the peace created between Heaven and Hell can only be kept if the balance is kept between the forces of light and darkness which was why, the Nephilim had to be borne by the fragility of man and the devoutness of angels. The Nephilim live because they have a sworn purpose which is of course bound by a holy prophecy kept by the archangel, Raziel," she had halted her speech and let her eyes momentarily run through each of us. I had thought that it was a gesture that she had meant to relieve herself from her hesitance, since, none of us were in a hurry to let her finish the narrative. We were all very eager to learn and to understand why such a person would seem to be…bound in an even glorious purpose than any of us.

My left hand caught my wrist and I remember no such discomfort since we had gathered for the discussion. She was within my presence, providing me relief. And that was when an audible memory flash in mind that I found myself gaping as she continued her statement. I massaged my temple to relieve the tension and as if the same memory had incurred in my brother's thoughts, he looked at my direction.

If I had remembered correctly, the demon had referred to _her_ as the seed of Raziel.

Stark snarled, "Raziel? Isn't he the angel with the book of secrets?"

Rogers shot him a surprised looked on which Stark had rewarded with an abhorrent expression, "Don't give me that sardonic look cap, I may not be as religious or uh," he made those weird hand gestures and flailing again as he spoke, "…I just read a lot,"

My brother eyed me as if to create a mental conversation regarding my knowledge of foreign myth. I shook my head and gestured for us to continue listening. She cleared her throat and fiddled with her necklace, "Raziel is _the_ sole keeper of all secrets and mysteries. The inscriptions of God's Fate for each being that walks on earth is written in scripture by another angel named _Metatron_ but even without the book, Raziel need only to recall the teachings handed down to him by the Almighty,"

"But if guardian angels are real then, why don't they fight off the demons themselves?" Romanov quipped.

The doctor spoke in a steady voice, "The entrance of the Nephilim to Earth had its consequences, it is difficult for angels to intrude into the matters between the Nephilim and the demons they are sworn to hunt. It was only a matter of time until the demon lords discovered the Nephilim's existence that they had made a way to create spawns of their own. _Metatron_, the holder of the scriptures was tricked into revealing the pages regarding the Nephilim's existence thus forcing him to hide the book on some sacred ground on Earth, never to be seen or heard of again," Fury flinched, "Some Nephilim were not strong enough to fight the temptations brought about by human touch and the devil's advocacy which is why a number of the Nephilim were called abominations and shunned for the hypocrisy of their actions,"

I've lately wondered if the All-father had known such things about the god of the mundane and the holy race they call angels. The concept of Heaven and Hell were the same for Asgardians in reference to Yggdrasil and Hel, but the afterlife and netherworld was of no strange nature to us. Even inhabitants of the other half of my being would look at life as a matter of a term before death should it come. Their philosophy or rather their faith was of a complex sort and from what I understood from the doctor's words, godly connection and fervor was an unnatural thing to gain and disrupt. There was always just one god that we were not so fond of, Death.

The doctor's hand ran through the chain on her neck. I had noticed that 'twas a habit of hers, in what I could only assume as a gesture of worry, "Thus, the second rebellion took place and the death of the Nephilim had devastated the angel Raziel and the demon lord to cut their connections from Heaven providing a strong ward against another invasion. The demon lord had disappeared and the angel Raziel had lost his wings and some of his immortality but never the truths bestowed to him. He lived among the humans for millennia and so did the demon-lord."

She took a breath and tucked her arms at the small of her back, "However, their fate was written even before Metatron had ridden himself of the prophecies regarding the Nephilim and unfortunately for Raziel, his children had to carry-on the punishment The heavens showed mercy for the indispensible angel that the other angels had given him a tool to keep his connection with heaven,"

"The scryer," Nick had connected to her words.

"Yes. He had only used it once before his death to dictate the whereabouts of his children for them to guard. Also, the angels had to take special care of his children since they were the key to the balance,"

Thor had rested his elbows on the table, "Balance for what exactly?"

The doctor turned to him now with keen eyes, "I mentioned before that demons are fond of manipulating man to pursue their treachery and that is mainly why they eat the soul of men however, there is a way for them to escape the abyss of hell and permanently live on earth and possibly penetrate the barrier towards Heaven,"

Things were beginning to make sense now and I could not help but speak of the knowledge I had uncovered, "The blood of an angel," I could not believe the words that were dripping from my mouth. I had heard of tales regarding the immortal and unseen guardians of the humans but I have never thought of them as other than some religious folklore.

She gave me a look of reprise before she nodded.

The captain stood from his seat and went near her, "The demon referred to _you_? _You're_ the Nephilim? That's why they want your blood?"

She blinked at him and curled her lips, "Yes," She turned to Fury now, "That's where England comes into picture. This man we're searching for is named John Dee,"

Stark's eyes grew wide, "Wawait! John Dee as in philosopher slash occultist back in the 1500s?"

Rogers scoffed, "And for a second there I thought you would be more surprised about her identity," Stark brushed him off. Most of us had an inkling that the doctor was not purely mortal but none of us had expected that she was of the heavenly sort. I was beginning to feel more overwhelmed. I couldn't really understand what the captain's expression truly meant, he looked like he had just heard the answer to a lingering question about his beliefs but whether or not the information had truly sunk in, I wasn't certain.

Romanov's face grew white and I could only make-out a few of the words she had mouth which included, angel and impossible.

Dylan cocked a brow, "The one and only," she paused to edit, "and from what the intruder has told me last night, I could only assume that he _has_ the scryer,"

Fury crossed his arms, "But if we go to England, wouldn't it be ironically convenient for us to hand _you_ over to him?"

A hand went up to the back of her neck, "as the Nephilim, all they have to do is find a way for me to reveal how to open the gates of Heaven and Hell and bring all its wrath into earth and with the scryer in hand, they could just drop my blood into the orb and command me to do their bidding so-"

Romanov went to the doctor's side, "We take initiative and take the scryer away from him,"

Stark shrugged and spoke in a sarcastic tone, "And that's it, we're done?"

"Well Tony, being me has its perks. I have more than one enemy at hand and getting John is just the first part of ending this mess,"

"What did the other demon, Mephistophiles, want with you and John Dee?" Fury's voice deepened.

There was a low beeping sound that had interrupted our discussion, as we looked outside, we could see the tall structures slide past us like running across trees. We had arrived.

The doctor's hand went to the hilt of her blade at the side of her leg, "Let's go find out shall we?"

* * *

"We're minutes from landing on safe perimeter doc," Barton supplied.

"There's something I have to do first before we get to John Dee," a hand went to the side of her hilt, "I have to anoint you guys now,"

Romanov's brows furrowed, "Anoint?"

Dylan nodded, "Well, you want to get rid of those things properly right? Well, by the looks on your faces," she looked at Stark and Rogers, "you're waiting for me to tell you that only special weaponry can penetrate through their souls. Well, I won't. It's not quite true. It requires a special _kind_ of person to destroy those things and in order for you to turn into those kinds of people, you have to be anointed."

"So what do you want us to do doc?"

"It's simple Fury; I just have to bind you to in an oath. You already have the Sight, now all you need is the blessing to kill of those bastards,"

So, the Nephilim were powerful enough to create bonds with their creators and bestow such graces to others? No wonder the demons fear their existence, "Then, we must begin," Thor said in all conviction.

She had instructed the lot of us to form a circle around her. She had in her hands a small vial filled with clear liquid and the angelic blade, unsheathed, "When I tell you to, you must repeat the words I will say. For now, I want all of you to think of the purpose of this gathering and I need you to just…believe in it," She looked at the each of us as we had all nodded to reaffirm her instructions, "Let's begin, and no matter happens, don't close your eyes and never doubt," The doctor closed her eyes and knelt. She took a few moments of silence and positioned the tip of her blade just inches away from the floor. She had looked like one of those marbled sculptures of the heavenly warriors I saw sitting atop of some cathedral except, she was the real thing. The lights began to flicker that some of us squinted at the occurrence. Then, she began muttering something in a low tune. Her words were beyond the comprehension of any of us and as I watched intently at her actions, I began to understand that she was indeed, reciting a prayer. _Enochian_. She delivered the prayer in such a languid and melodic manner that her chants gave us all a feeling of melancholy. As the lights began to dim, traces of pentagramic lines literally burned through the circle we had formed and it felt like we were actually steeping on the blue fire.

We were stirred but we remained composed. We had to focus in order to for this to work out properly. The doctor continued her enochian speech and still with eyes closed to us, opened the vial and let the fluid slowly drench the sides of the blade. She shifted her hold on the blade and dropped the small vial. She positioned her free hand in front of the dagger, "repeat the words," she said, moving the sharp sides of the blade closer to her skin, "_Caelitus Mini Ures,_"

Romanov had reacted to her words, she had understood the mortal speech, ""_Caelitus Mini Ures,_" we all proclaimed in chorus and as if she took it as a signal, the slid the blade across her palms where blood began to uncover and drip from her hands. However, she had not only wounded herself, as soon as she cut through her skin, a sudden burning pain went across each of us in the same exact location where the cut was made but despite the obvious crease on our skin, there was no blood. The blue fire that had emanated at the place where we stood began to retreat like fluid flames into the core of the circle where the doctor knelt. The blue fire circled around her bodice as she continued praying and as if to sheath the blade with the blood on her hands, palm caress the cold dagger and in some speed, she had lodged the dagger on the floor of enochian writings which was followed by a strange light as the fire began to disperse. We were partially blinded by the luminescence but I was able to see beyond the blindness and what beheld me was a sight both frightening and beautiful at the same time. The light came from the Dylan Sinclair's eyes-a breathtaking picture of the galaxy mirrored in her calm expression and I was certain that at that moment, before things went to normal, she was looking at me.

* * *

The district of Mortlake was an eerie site. The cold air of the isolated streets crept through us like a moving cloud of ghosts as we walked past gothic structures one by one. The glass windows had gleamed a prism of colors as little by little, light from the sun emerged. We had greeted the dawn with silence as we made our way towards the brewery where John Dee, had apparently hidden. The doctor had directed our path. Apparently, the scryer was leading her to him. The heavenly object had a natural connection to the Nephilim and because of this; we had to be more careful than ever. This may have been a carefully planned trap. I would know.

"Strange," my brother had whispered as he walked alongside the captain, "I had thought that Midgard was a populous planet,"

Rogers cocked the brow, "I may have been asleep for 75 years but, I was pretty sure about the same thing,"

Stark kept his pace despite the weight of his armor. Among all of us, he was the most skeptic regarding the warm greeting of the district, "Sh-sh…" he hushed at the two, "I think we should all be smart and keep our tone at minimal, yes?"

Barton snorted, "Now that's a first,"

The doctor took a quick glimpse of us; "No, Tony's right," Stark raised his hands in gratitude for her acknowledgement, "Something is definitely wrong here,"

A loud avian-screech echoed through the streets making us squander, "Crows. It's a signal, let's move fast," the doctor doubled her pace and so did we. We were all more cautious as we walked alley after alley. It was getting colder and colder and as we drew nearer the Brewery but the lot of us weren't alone in our treading. We could here heavy footsteps gathering all over the vicinity but what was even stranger was even if we were visibly seen, we were of no interest to them.

Natasha cocked a gun, "Why aren't they attacking?"

The doctor stopped and took a quick scan, "I could ask the same thing," slowly; our path became occupied with a herd of demons of all forms and sizes. Some of them so deformed that I was not able to think of words to fit their appearance. But they all remained immobile, however, we were not about to take our chances and lose our guard. The doctor lowered her blade and for a moment seemed dazed as she eyed the brewery, "I can't feel it anymore, it's not here!"

Fury kept his eyes on the demons, "Then why are _they_ still here?"

"Wouldn't we all want to know?" A grey cloud came rising in the middle of the army in the form of a man. _So this is Mephistophiles, the demon lord. _He looked at us with his raven eyes sinisterly. One by one he had apparated to each of our sides as if to observe what he was up against. We had all deflected his advances and this filled him with much evil delight. He returned to the lesser demons, "Easy gents! I just wanted to meet the little angel's new friends," He gritted his sharp teeth and crossed his legs as he sat in mid-air. He pouted and let his left arm touch his chest, "Oh how rude of me, I know who you all are and but I've yet to introduce myself formally. Mephistophiles," As soon as he lowered his head as if for formality's sake, a small ball of electric energy clashed into the right side of his chest making the demon hiss and off-balance. The gray demon in mortal skin's eyes squinted at Stark who had just attacked him, the rest of us looked at Tony in confusion.

Stark lowered his open palm, "Wh-what? I wanted to see if I could really kill one now!"

Mephistophiles stood and wiped off the burning cloth's ashes, "So…you're anointed," he cocked a brow at Stark, "Nice try. Felt a little pinch,"

The doctor's grasp on her blade tightened, "Out of the way croatoan," Mephistophiles snarled at her and turned to grey mist as he sped towards the side of the doctor. He was at her back now, just inches away from her skin but clearly that was not enough. We all surrounded him now, ready to attack if needed. The doctor's armed hand went to side of her throat where Mephistophiles' hands had grabbed her.

"Doc?" Fury pointed his gun to the demon's head.

"Don't mind him. He wants you all to be off guard when he mobilizes them," the grey demon's lips now brushed against her cheeks as he faced us. This made me cringe, "Oh but they do mind love. Don't worry, they are not mine to command, besides," Dylan took the initiative and grabbed him but as soon as she was about to lift and throw him, he had disappeared.

The demon's laughter filtered the air, "I am here to provide assistance!" The demons had began to mobilize and the rest of us followed suit as we charged through the gates of the brewery with much haste but to our surprise, the grey mist that Mephistophiles emitted merely grazed our path and created an acid smoke among the lesser demons themselves. _Was this some practical joke? _

"We have to find John!" The doctor shouted at Fury as she raced towards the demon lord. Fury nodded and ordered his agents and Stark to fall back and secure the entrance as the rest of us made our way inside the brewery.

"Ah-ah-ah lovely, you're coming with me!" We were just a quarter away from the entrance when the demon lord in mist form quickly charged at the doctor, knocking her hard against the wall. Her blade fell to the floor and she struggled to keep consciousness by the impact, "GO! I'm fine!" she yelled at the captain and my brother who raced to look for John Dee.

Thor gave me a look of concern, "Guard them brother!"

Mephistophiles stood in between me, Fury and the doctor, "How nice of you to have friends my love, they are sure to make my job a lot easier, eh?" Mephistophiles drew a symbol with his finger on the wall where the doctor's head rested and even before she could take hold of her blade, her face began to fade in white and weaken more. The symbol drilled into the crumbling wall with a black smoke and soon enough the marble had spiraled into a portal. His magic had created a pull on my gauntlets that I fell to my knees. Fury's eyes furrowed and quickly fired at the demon.

Mephistophiles merely greeted his shots and he walked towards Fury with a body full of holes. I couldn't stand; there was little energy which enabled me to move. Whatever was draining the life from the doctor was doing the same to me. _What was this connection? _

The grey demon swatted the gun from Fury's hand and before he could counter, Mephistophiles grabbed Fury by the neck and slowly lifted him, "What's this? An aging mortal and an Asgardian left powerless against one man?"

"You won't-," Fury coughed, "take her…!"

The demon blinked, "Is that so?" He gripped on his neck tighter and slowly, I fought to pick myself up while he was distracted. I knew what my move was going to be, there was only one option, "Who's gonna stop me?"

"Me!" I threw a spike at his leg making him kneel and drop Fury. In my peripheral, I saw the doctor, lying barely conscious eyeing at me and then her blade.

Mephistophiles yanked the blade out of his skin and charged at me, "Try me!" He lifted his right arm which had transformed into some sort of glass blade. He swung at me a number of times which I had deflected successfully. He was fast but I was faster. He took another lunge at me just as I had expected and knowing this, I had used a phantom self to lure him into a crevice. He stumbled and was momentarily left unarmed. I took the chance to make my way toward the doctor. The force of the portal behind her was getting stronger and the weight of gauntlets grew heavier with it. I slid my arm across her back and let her rest the weight of her body on mine. Her head rested on my shoulder as we shuffled to get away from the portal, "M-my blade…he's…" the doctor's breath ached beneath my neck and she looked a lot worse than before. Her eyes were losing the light it had and the veins on her neck were becoming visible than normal. I set her beside the unconscious Fury while I held her to sit in place. Pain writhed in her eyes and she began to tremble. Her eyes flicked in light and darkness than I cupped her chin and directed my eyes at hers, "You must stay awake! Tell me what to do," there was no time for her to respond as her eyes shifted to Mephistophiles who levitated himself toward my back. The doctor had managed to push me away by using a type of magic I had never seen before. It was a strong thrust for such a smaller person but she was always clever in her rough ways. The dagger was within my reach.

Her eyes turned into an eerie shade of white and a blue fire had radiated all around her. Mephistophiles was thrown aback by the force of her power and the flame had burned parts of his body. Mephistophiles etched a grim look as he laughed, "Is that all the power of heaven has left Nephilim?" He rose and raised his hand at the portal. It grew bigger and the whole brewery was now inside a storm. Everything was being pulled inside it and the symbol which he drew glowed even more that the doctor's flames began to diminish. My gauntlets tightened but I was still able to move. _I had to._ My hands clasped on the dagger where I felt an odd spark go through me. I ran towards Mephistophiles and was able to slice across his back before he apparated. Knowing he had no means to deflect it, he grabbed my collar and attempted to ram me into the cold floor. I shifted my position and drove him into the same space he had wanted to me to crash but by doing so, the blade slid threw my fingers. The demon lord kicked me out of his way and darted towards it and then it was time for me to make my real move.

The doctor saw me eye the portal and her expression turned into a genuine look of concern mixed with warning, "Loki, don't!" I barely heard her words as I sped towards Mephistophiles and drove ourselves into the opened ward and soon enough I found myself in a spectrum tunnel, clearly, in a place unfamiliar to me. Alone. With the demon who was trying to kill me.

"Hahahahahahahaha-eck!" the demon remained cast on his back with blood dripping in his mouth. I landed a few feet away from him, still with enough stamina to finish him off. My wrists throbbed to the beating of my core but it was not the same harsh pull that the doctor and I had experienced earlier on. I felt a tinge of pain at my side where the demon had managed to scratch with his claws, I started to stand, "What are you laughing about? You've failed," I spoke with much irritation as I wiped away my own blood from my palms. I was now looking over him, my shadow cast on his horrid face. He gritted his red jagged teeth, "I would've-wanted to save this conversation for later…" He lifted his hand and pointed at me, "Sacrifice…such a mortal thing for an Asgardian to harbor,"

My boot pressed unto his gashed wound which made him squirm, but his beam never left, "And what've you to know about sacrifice?" I said, without blinking.

"Please," He raised his arms in surrender and I removed the weight on my leg, "More than you know, that's for sure." I knelt to his side and grabbed his neck, "Do tell," he gripped my arm and to my surprise, the contact of his skin against my wrists gave him a sting, "Wh-what are those-?"

I let the metal touch the sides of his throat, "I said, talk!" The demon growled and his eyes turned darker, "What answers do you seek Asgardian? Is it merely the location of the scryer? Or the key to unlock your chains?"

My eyes narrowed, "Both."

"Very well but then, let me answer you with the same words that you have spoken to that brother of yours when he inquired about the Tesseract, yes?" I flinched and the demon had noticed this for his eyes showed a tint of excitement, "Yes Halfling, I know of those events, we were all watching and how I admired your methods then, and now look where you stand. At the mercy of the very people you had wanted to subjugate. Pitiful," he spat.

I took a blade from my hilt and let it rest against his throat, "And look where _you_ stand, at the mercy of the pitiful person you so loom over,"

He closed his eyes, "They were wrong about you. You are not as heartless as they say,"

The dull edge of my blade delved deeper into his throat, "And who are _they_, exactly? Pray tell. For I shall surely give them a visit once I am through with you,"

The demon was slowly shaking his head as he lifted his attention from me to the sky, "This isn't just some salvific ploy for you is it? It's the Nephilim. Awww, I never thought you were capable of being so self-le-ack!" I threw him a punch to stop him from his mockery. He was manipulating the situation and he was a fool to try it against me.

"Last chance fiend!" I challenged which he rewarded with an ugly grimace, "My fall today is merely the beginning and soon enough, _they_ too will come for her,"

"You test my patience," I hissed, slowly cutting across his chest. I did not feel any remorse for my actions. No hesitation. I was acting on pure drive. He was the enemy and he had not only harmed my brothers' friends, he had harmed her.

The demon had gripped my wrist and began to slowly rise despite the obvious tension and the fumes coming from the burns he had acquired from my gauntlets, "Time will come for me to die, but not until that mortal does and I don't think that time is soon. The third party who had taken much interest in her bounty is about to be granted entrance in this realm once more! And this time, I do not think they will be as patient as they were before with you!" He jabbed his elbow into my chest and quickly wrote something on the muddy ground. _Another portal_. The scenery began to shift and strong gusts of wind came circling out of the portal making it difficult to see and breathe.

"Consider this as a parting gift Loki of Asgard! There will be no such kindness for you once my sacrifice has been fulfilled, the Ch-"

* * *

**Mortlake Brewery**

Thor and the Captain had managed to get past a number of demons and into the broiler room where John Dee was situated. The room was very wide and in it lay strange books and artifacts in numerous shelves. Scattered all over the walls were enochian writings and other symbols which were neither familiar to the members of the Avengers. Candles of black, white and red were lit all over with wax permanently damaging the sides of the wall. And there by the window stood a teenage looking man in a suit. He looked nothing peculiar in fact the only strange thing about him was his ageless face. John Dee was of legendary origin and for him to look so youthful sent an uncanny feeling to the both of them,

He let out his tongue and gave the two a Cheshire grin, "What you seek is not here young ones,"

"I say contrary. You will come with us or we will have to force you to!"

John Dee took a few steps closer, "There is no need for that Son of Odin, Captain Rogers,"

The captain gaped, "You know of us?"

He smiled eerily, "Well of course I do. You're _in_ the prophecy afterall,"

Thor pointed Mjolnir at John and looked at him much seriousness, "We have no time for your banter!"

John had clasped his hands and let his fingers rest at his mouth, "It also stated of your infamous patience young man,"

The Captain readied his shield, "Enough!"

John Dee walked closer, "I will come with you for now however, I assure you, it will not be long until you regret my presence," Thor had gestured the captain to tie Dee's hands as they escorted him out of the room, "I think we'll be the judge of that ourselves,"

John Dee's face lit up, "Ohohoho. I hope you are not fond of fairytale endings then. For if you do then, you best ready yourself for the story you have just entered,"

"And why is that?"

"Because Odin-son, this story doesn't end,"

* * *

**AN: That concludes chapter 5. As per advised, I will update with a request of a minimum of 10 reviews now (formerly 5 but your reviews tell me to demand more haha), earliest would be the 19th, latest would be the end of the month. Sorry about this, I just really need your feedback as well. I usually give shout-outs to best reviews and I've been meaning to name a minor character after a loyal reader of mine or something…Just some thoughts. Thank you by the way for all of your support! And as usual, forgive some mistakes I might have missed out on upon reviewing.**

**I said before that this story will probably take around 5 chapters or so, well, it doesn't look that way now. Maybe 10 chapters? I dunno, it depends. I'm very flexible.**

**The Nephilim, Raziel, Metatron, the scryer, Mephistophiles, enochian language and John Dee is based on my research and readings (the historical narrative regarding the Raziel rebellions is purely fiction, I am not in any way trying to forge or taint the real history of the Church). Forgive coincidental similarities especially since I've been receiving feedback regarding the angelic reference of the Mortal Instruments novels. Rest assured that despite having admittedly read Cassandra Clare's works, I can safely say that both of our research interpretations are different in a spectrum of ways. Raziel is the archangel who holds the secrets of the universe as based on research :) My DMC fanfiction was written (although not completely posted) even before the books came out. The Nephilim is a popular fiction subject anyway.**

** Thank you for respecting the independence of my work and I do appreciate readers of both my work and hers. Oh and just in case you haven't guessed which Goethe work is Meph based from, here's a clue (one word) and obviously, Mortlake is another (yes Mortlake district is real, it's in England). "_Caelitus Mini Ures,_" roughly means "My strength is from Heaven," in Latin. Correct me if I'm wrong :) the croatoan reference can point to a number of things however, I am merely borrowing its title, I am changing its meaning and will explain this further on the succeeding chapter.**

**The Avengers ©Marvel**

**Dylan Sinclair ©LVS**

**(P.S. tweet me –loligoth_13, for updates, suggestions and random blurbs Oh and congrats to Hiddles for winning an award! Yay!).**

**Thank you for your time and as always to Tom H.'s voice narrating the story in my head.**

**UPDATE! Chapter 6 is already half done with the tentative title "Trust Issues," so keep 'em reviews coming! **

**Sincerely, the author trying to buy time to make her thesis,**

**-LVS**


	6. Six: Trust Issues

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

_Author's Note: I have read your reviews and I'm seriously, so ridiculously happy and grateful that I updated as soon as I finished writing the chapter. Thank you! Enjoy!_

* * *

**Six: Trust Issues**

* * *

LOKI

* * *

There was a loud clanging sound that had intruded our heated conversation as Mephistophiles had tried to open a new portal. It was a small entry point and by the way that he limply stood, there wasn't a doubt in my mind that he couldn't hold on to it much longer, "You can't get rid of me that easily you mule!" I slowly made my way towards him and watched as he continued to force power out of himself, "We have made a deal; there is nothing you can do!" he spat.

I transported myself to him that we were now face to face. My hand gripped around his wrist tight enough that I could hear his bones crack little by little. The demon yelped as his dark, emotionless eyes looked at me in horror, "You dare speak of nonsense to me! There isn't the slightest chance that they survived!" I hissed.

He tried moving his hand, "Oh but that's the funny thing with chances, it fathers possibilities. And well, no matter how few of them left, the _Other _remains in good health and he is ecstatic to hear about your new endeavors as a traitor!" I kicked him in his shin making him kneel as I placed a steady grip on his arm. Slowly, the portal he had summoned began to fade.

My free hand pulled a number of strands of his gray hair as I forced him to look at me as he answered, "What does _that_ have to do with all of this?"

He spoke in between pants, "What every man wants,"

"Power?" my tone was not condescending but rather intrusive.

He spat out some blood and barred his teeth, "No. Power, as you have proven is easy to achieve," My hand went from his wrist to his throat which he instinctively tried to control the pressure over. He inhaled, "-I-it is Control…the only thing that not one man has been successful enough to marry power with," He licked his lips, "The man you sought, John Dee, well, he and I are two of a kind and though we're not quite fond of sharing our possessions, we will take the Nephilim as sort of… a shared investment," his statement filled me with disgust that I couldn't help but give him a solid punch before I let him go. I paced back a few steps, frowning, "What is it that you want from her?"

He wiped his mouth creating a red smear at the sides of his face, "The one thing she cannot take from us- free will," My brows furrowed, "You see when John Dee was mortal, he made a deal with a demon to give him the gift of intelligence, fame and power through science but of course, a wish like that comes with a hefty price. _Faustus_, as he was known in his previous life, was a very clever man though and he had feared the fiery furnace on which his soul will mount once I came for him and he had found a way to tie his soul to my own existence and thus our little situation. But a mortal man sharing the affinity of a demon is quite parasitic…"

"And you believe that she can unbind you?" His white irises became fueled in a grotesque amusement as he built up his strength to stand.

He shook his head but didn't erase his inspired look, "We don't _just _believe, we_ know_. In fact," he gave out a horrid laugh, "She can do much more that you can imagine. Her blood contains the blood of Raziel and by using her blood to unlock the gates of heaven and hell, we can unleash every bit of holy magic she has. We can get her to unbind us _and_ make us the controllers of all realms if we wanted. Not unlike the limited power of your Asgardian runes,"

I cocked a brow, eyeing the pitiful creature as he continued his attempt to threaten me, "You can't control us if you're dead," I spoke without hesitation.

"Oh, what makes you think we'll stay in our fragile forms?"

* * *

**Mortlake Brewery**

John Dee stood in between Thor and the Captain, cuffed in his arms yet unwavered. The two moved with much haste and dragged the estranged scientist as they heard rumbling sounds coming from the entrance where they had left the others. Thor had ran ahead of Rogers and was left stricken at the scenery of the doctor in peril. He had called on to Fury who was slowly gaining consciousness. The doctor was running out of air as silver strings of light began to envelop her like chains. Thor had immediately noticed the pull coming from the enscribed marble that he quickly threw Mjolnir at the symbol where pieces of it flew across the room. The doctor opened her eyes and made a loud gasp as she breathed in air. She placed a hand to her throat and looked at the Asgardian, "Are you alright doctor?" he had asked on which she answered with a few nods. Thor then went to Fury's side and lent him a hand for him to stand which the director declined. He was upset and felt very inclined to exact justice on the events that had just incurred.

The captain hurriedly went to the doctor's side and took her by the waist to hoist her up. John Dee stood motionless as he eyed the doctor with a grimace, "Ohohoho, I always knew that enchantment wouldn't last, such power the Nephilim has!"

Dylan's eyes narrowed at John Dee.

Fury went to John Dee's side and pushed him towards the exit, "You can talk more inside your cell you loon," Fury was normally a patient man however having been disgraced by a demon left him without much room for any sort of formality.

The doctor kept on blinking as if to clear her vision, she was still weakened by the demonic enchantment that she had allowed the captain to take possession of her blade.

"I do not mean to set aside your health, however, where is my brother? I had thought that he would have aided you,"

Dylan looked at Thor and shook her head, "N-no, he did. Mephistophiles had transported them somewhere. He didn't abandon us,"

The captain gave the older Asgardian a look of disdain, "Well, then, I guess, we're gonna have to find him at some point. But now, I think it's best if we regroup first,"

John Dee let out a vile laugh mirroring that of the grey demon, "You didn't think that you would be getting out of here that easily did you now, dearies?"

The sound of flocking crows rang in their ears and rustling from the outside ascended followed by heavy drops of rain.

The captain turned to Thor, "This isn't your doing is it?"

"I would have warned you if I would summon such climate," he said, looking outside.

The doctor started making her way towards the exit and stopped halfway to rest her body on the sides of the door where John Dee stood near, "It's an omen, he's calling more demons to come after us before this whole place turns to ashes,"

John took a step towards her which Fury interrupted, "Ah, so you've seen through my plans!"

"You forget who you're talking to scientist, now, move your feet before we leave you behind!" Fury shoved him outside and called on his agents to escort the estranged man to the airship.

Dark circles became evident around the doctor's eyes but her expression remained steadfast. She was not a weakling and she had always detested getting bested out of circumcialities she could have easily avoided, "Go, we have to hurry,"

The captain gave the doctor a concerned look as she spoke. He nodded, "I'll keep the path clear,"

The doctor turned to the blond Asgardian, "I'm fine, I'll catch up,"

Thor placed a hand into her shoulder, "What is it that you plan on doing?"

The doctor took out small crystals from her palm filled with silky liquid. The crystals were inscribed in enochian writing and Thor had understood right away that it was some sort of ward that she had planned on setting around their keep, "Mephistophiles will definitely return for us. I'm just gonna leave him a present," they had looked like the stone runes which his father, the Great Odin, had presented, only unlike those of Asgardian craft, the stones look more finite.

Thor gave her a wide grin, "Careful,"

* * *

I was growing restless at the demon for trying his riddles with _me_. Above all people. I could not fathom the thought of him giving me reason to lay my guard down. His life and Dee's life meant nothing to me and yet he contained knowledge vital to our voyage. So, with much hesitation, I had asked the question I had denied asking for quite some time, "And what does the… _Chitauri_ have in benefit of this?" my words tasted like acrid waste.

"Finally," he gritted his teeth, "You are willing to listen!" He licked his lips before he continued, "A fresh start. A new army. They could subjugate the Earthlings for all I care, I'm just here to _collect_ their scraps and well a trip above has also been on my bucket list,"

_An army? How would they be able to devise such a way if most of them are dead and the scepter isn't in their possession? _I kept composed, "And as for John Dee?"

"He's my sacrifice of course. Killing him will hurt like hell and that would mean losing my knowledge about the prophecy however, it's a small price to pay for immortality,"

My gauntlets glowed as I curved my fingers into a ball out of scorn, "You threaten me with nothing but lies. I do not bow to such ill intentions from a demon,"

He clicked his tongue, "I never lie_ Laufeyson,_" his statement regarding my parentage was filled with spite, "That's right, I know who you _really_ are… And you," he pointed his bloodied finger and looked at me with crazed eyes, "are _one_ to judge me for my honest ploys to rule over the lesser ones. Was it not _you_ who had started this vogue?"

The grey demon's sentiment gave me a feeling of blissful sarcasm. _Was his imitation a form of flattery or lordship?_ I gave him a rueful smile, "Ehehehehehehe… You are pathetic after all. I have given you too much time to cower behind your words as you continue to struggle for your life. Let me make it easier for you and send you back to hell myself!" I had sped towards him with a small knife in hand, ready to plunge into his chest. I was encased without any doubts about ending his term on Midgard once and for all. My attempt was close at success until another portal had appeared, not summoned by him. The pull was so strong and abrupt that I was dragged into it and the next thing I knew, I was being transported back to Mortlake.

Mephistophiles coughed out blood, "What took you so long? I thought we had a deal?"

A repitilian creature in silver armor-like apparel appeared at his side, " The Chitauri do not take orders from demons,"

"…only spoils,"

* * *

I had landed on the wet floor of the streets near the brewery, still with my blade clasped firmly in between my fingers. _Damn, I was so close to ending that bastard's life! _Rain poured heavily that I had heard weighty footsteps draw close. I wiped the water out of my face to clear my vision.

"Brother!"

Thor came stalking towards me as I began to fix myself. I had noticed that besides my brother, only Barton, Stark and the Captain were present. A number of demons had surfaced and were heading towards the moving base. I had assumed that Fury and Romanov had taken John Dee inside for custody and had hoped that the doctor was already within safe premises considering her situation. But, I knew for a fact that she wasn't inside. She was still inside the brewery or at least somewhere near. I could feel her presence because I couldn't feel the gauntlets'.

"Where have you been? Are you alright?" I didn't have time to answer him as two demons jumped to greet us. Thor quickly used his hammer to swat them away and I in turn had used what remained of my pikes to keep a safe distance as we made our way towards the others.

Before I could divert myself towards the brewery, my half brother had grabbed my arm and yelled directly at my ear, "We will converse later!"

Demons began crawling to the sides of the craft and some of them were successful enough to damage it making it hard for it to keep afloat. Stark had quickly shot at the lot of them aiming at the engine while Barton kept the Captain's way clear as he headed towards the base's entrance.

I had managed to meet the Captain halfway and forced him stop as I lifted one demon in front of him and threw the creature aback. He etched onfused, "Where is she?" my tone had an edge to it and by his expression, the captain was surprised that when he turned around, the doctor was still nowhere to be found.

"We have to go now!" Barton had directed at us as he shot arrows at the demons at our sides.

The glass windows of the brewery began to break one by one as fire began to engulf the whole structure. The firewall that embraced the structure was silvery white and the demons surrounding it quickly became purged that no trace of their presence was visible. The flames began to spread rapidly, "She's still in there!" the Captain yelped.

Smoke began to drift from the brewery's entrance and the doctor finally began to emerge. She managed to cut across the demons blocking her path and was almost within our reach, "Stark, the hover!" The flames never parched despite the rain. _This was her doing._

"Way ahead of you doc!" Stark had lifted the side of the hover where my brother had quickly directed thunder to supply it with electricity. The moving base began to mobilize and an entrance opened for us to hastily enter. Stark grabbed the Captain and literally threw him inside as Clint, the doctor and I began to run as the craft began to move. As the demons treaded towards our direction, so did the flames make their way. My brother was able to leap towards the entrance where the Captain assisted him. Stark could no longer provide us assistance as he was keeping some of the demons dangling in the sides of our transportation at bay. Barton managed to grab the ledge of the base and reached out his hand towards the still weakened doctor. She had managed to hold on to him and was safely pulled inside.

I was relieved. At least now, she was safe. And at that moment, I was left with another choice. If I allow myself to get left behind, I could mask the Chitauri's return and finish that matter myself without anyone knowing. I would become a fugitive yet again however, I would lessen their endangerment for sure...and I wouldn't have to be a prisoner of Asgard anymore. _If_ I were to join them, I could find a way for me to end the lot of this. To be free once more and should the Chitauri come for me, I would have…aid. And the doctor could...

Dylan quickly turned, "Loki!" She had called to me with pleading eyes. Her hand was outstretched for me to hold unto to and the others were expecting my presence. I closed my eyes and took hold of her hand as she pulled me into the craft and had left us all drenched in cold rain water as we all watched the metal door close midway.

We were all out of breath, eyeing each other to reaffirm of our mutual relief as the white flames came circling around the whole of Mortlake. Stark's voice had intercepted our rest, "Uh, we got a little situation guys," he was speaking through one of S.H.I.E.L.D's communication devices connected to the craft, "Doc, you may want to look at this," the doctor scrambled to her feet and directed herself towards the clear glass on which we all saw approaching us was a large flock of bone-winged creatures with red eyes. They were gigantic and the pressure they could inflict on the ship could cause our crash. Stark had tried shooting at them but they had clearly outnumbered him.

Fury came rushing in towards us but before he had the chance to speak, Stark came flinging towards the entrance which he quickly shut. The base began to shake as the demonic birds began attacking and we felt it begin to slow and descend, "We can't fall! The whole brewery is warded, we will burn!" My brother explained.

"Not if I can help it," the doctor remained still as she eyed the flying creatures. She momentarily closed her eyes and the same blue unconsuming flames from the anointing began to circle her. The rain's dropping halted and the water turned into a multitude of needles. The scene left us all dumbfounded as the doctor opened her eyes, revealing an eerily beautiful shade of white light, the water needles pierced through each of the birds as one by one they fell leaving us only with a disturbing screech as they descended.

The blue flames turned to white and for a moment created a silhouette around her body but as soon as the doctor blinked and lifted her stare, it disappeared and her eyes returned to their normal blue.

Romanov's voice echoed through the prompter, "All systems go boss, let's get to safehaven,"

The doctor turned to face us but before she could mutter anything as an explanation she began to stumble. I instinctively drove myself towards her and luckily caught her, before she could collapse. Unlike before however, she was unconscious and shivering and cradled securely in _my_ arms. _I couldn't believe it myself._

And no one was happy about my gesture.

* * *

My brother had seen the gash on my wrists that he had advised me to take a shift and watch over the doctor as she rested. Apparently, the doctor had taken initiative to talk to Thor about the complexity of my shackles. He admittedly spoke of his guilt and pity towards my father's sentence however he had not forgotten to remind me of my past actions. Still, he insisted that for so long as I remain behaved, he would allow my presence near the doctor. I really didn't care much about him giving me authority, I would have seen to her care even without his bickering.

I kept watch as she lay in slumber. She looked so tired yet peaceful as she rested and even if I was exhausted myself, I could not find it in me to close my eyes. I was too afraid that something terrible would happen should I let my guard down. Especially now that the grey demon had informed me about my debt towards my former accomplice.

Ever since she had revealed to us the truth about her identity, I had always expected her to be stronger than any of us. I think we all did. Her being part angel just gave the impression of superior power and yet she was still capable of being fragile. Maybe it was that enchantment which had led to her to her state or maybe it was her powers that had taken a huge toll on her. I could only make such assumptions but I was sure about one thing-

The stronger she is, the more the shackles felt weightless and the weaker she gets, the more it burnt my skin.

I had been trying to escape the truth of my reliant feelings towards her and having the Chitauri eye her as a pawn for revenge made my presence unbecoming and yet I could not bare to lose affiliation.

I went over to her side now, casting my shadow on her. To be this close to the woman I so admired gave me a lingering feeling of unsettlement. I was so dependent on her to provide me security and strength which was very uncharacteristic of me. I felt it so unnecessary for I could handle whatever stress the shackles provide and yet, the temptation to not resist her was strong._ Were these emotions brought about by mere coincidence? Or was it truly fate?_

My fingers wound around her wrist to check her pulse. It was steady. _Good. _Her skin was cold though and…soft as I brushed my hand across. It made her finger twitch and she started to regain consciousness. My hand lay steady on hers and I waited for her eyes to open.

"You mind if I take over?" Fury's voice sent me a shock that I quickly withdrew my touch and turned sideways to face him. He looked at me sinisterly as he approached. I had never enjoyed surprises.

"Of course," I said and acted coyly as I turned. I looked at the doctor one last time and then stepped aside for Fury to take my place.

"Nick?" the doctor's voice was low and I heard her shuffle around her sheets but didn't turn.

In my peripheral, I saw the doctor position herself to sit up to face Fury. The door closed on its own but I didn't truly leave at once.

"How are you feeling?"

She sighed, "I've had better days, thank you Director,"

Fury eyed her seriously, "I'm fine. The enchantment is meant to recreate the facet of death but it can only be done once. I survived. Can we please move on now?"

The director clasped his hands together, "You know sometimes, I just feel like not asking about you anymore,"

Dylan smirked, "That would be great, thanks,"

Fury leaned on his seat, "Well, tough. I'll keep banking on you anyway,"

"When are we ever gonna get serious Fury?"

Fury cocked a brow, "I'm always serious doc,"

* * *

It didn't take a long while for the doctor to recuperate that she had urged to discuss their plans as soon as she had changed her clothes. Being Nephilim meant that her ability to regenerate was twice as fast as that of humans and demon-inflicted scars were never a problem. The enchantment had taken a lot of energy from her however it would not take her long until she had regained her strength. She didn't have the luxury of the time to sit around. The circumstances were too critical to idle by.

Fury began, "So how do we find the scryer now? We don't have any leads. Dee's not really making much sense. He keeps on saying something about the next Orion," his brows shot upward as he eyed the doctor,

"Orion?"

The director crossed his arms, "He said that we have until the next Orion until Bellatrix returns to the Land of Darkness. Mean anything to any of you?"

Stark pursed his lips and put his hands to his waist as he exchanged looks with the doctor, "Well, that's pretty easy. No offense… Bellatrix is a derivative for Beatrice, your second name; obviously," The doctor rolled her eyes. Stark continued, "...the land of darkness could actually mean a specific location,

The captain sat upright and leaned on the glass table, "There's a special ops base near Russia code named as the land of darkness, Abkhazia,"

"The Black Sea place?" Stark interjected.

Rogers nodded, "Yes. We could ask agent Romanov if she's familiar with it,"

Fury gave a small smile, "Alright, progress. And the Orion?"

Stark turned to the control panel and programmed the digital screen to feature a specific constellation, "I've got a theory to tie all things up. Orion as the constellation as you all probably _don't_ know is depicted by the stars as a man. One of its stars is named Bellatrix, located at the his right shoulder which could mean that-"

The doctor remained silent as she observed the men talk. Rogers eyed the monitor, "The right shoulder could in a sense mean like a sort of accomplice or seat of power,"

Stark pointed at the captain, "Exactly,"

Fury placed his hands behind his back and took a glimpse at the doctor, "Bellatrix is latin for female warrior and being Nephilim of course makes the doctor a perfect fit to his little riddle. So… doc, Abkhazia and the stars…what do they all have in common?"

Dylan's eyes lit up, "Fate," she said condescendingly.

Stark's brows furrowed, "Sorry, what?"

The doctor stood from her seat and looked at them one by one in all seriousness, "_We_ all have the same ending," her eyes narrowed, "I know exactly where the scryer is. It's in Prague,"

The captain lifted his eyes from the monitor to the doctor, "Prague?"

Stark's eyes grew wide as he turned off the monitor and scrambled towards Fury with arms flailing, "Sonuvabitch, the Astrological clock! That's the scryer!"

* * *

Fury had asked Stark to create arrangements for the flight to Prague and had called upon his agents to explain their discovery. Agent Barton was the most skeptical about the information he had just received, "So how exactly are we gonna transport the clock?" he asked the doctor.

"The scryer isn't the clock itself, the scryer is embedded in it, agent Barton,"

Natasha stood at Fury's side, "Ok so what do we do? We just break the thing in half and pray that we find something spherical and holy looking?" her tone was half-humorous, half-polished.

The doctor's hand traced the chain around her neck and she presented her necklace to them, "You can use this," the three looked puzzled, "I learned from Dee that Raziel kept his power trapped inside of it as some sort of key all we need to do now is have something that can contain once its unleashed,"

Fury etched a look of perplexity at her statement which his agents mirrored, "He never told us that. How'd you find that out?"

Dylan shot Fury a grave look as if her words were carved in steel, "No secret can be kept from the blood of Raziel remember?" she said,

Natasha rolled her eyes, "You are all kinds of weird, you know that? And anyway, what do you even have in mind?"

The doctor blinked at them and inhaled, "Well, I understand that you have in possession a special kind of scepter…"

* * *

"Be careful with that Stark,"

"Relax doc, it's not like it's worth more than my life now is it?" The doctor's concerned expression didn't change making Stark cringe, "Oookay, that was a bad joke," Stark lifted the translucent tear-shaped crystal with silver tongs slowly and cautiously towards the glowing orb at of the crescent scepter. The doctor had given Stark a detailed discussion regarding the energy contained in her necklace. Stark had immediately prepped the S.H.I.E.L.D techs to gather some equipment as Fury and his agents stealthily pulled the scepter from its vault and secured it within the lab's premises.

Dylan stood close by and didn't blink as Stark began transferring the necklace,"Just place it at the core. Don't drop it,"

Stark began positioning the crystal and for a moment looked at the doctor, "Got it and uh, what happens if I miss?"

Dylan hesitantly answered,"There won't be enough technology in the world to save you," A sweat dropped from the sides of his face.

Stark's eyes grew but he shook the intensity of the situation off, "No pressure, okay, here goes…" The orb of the scepter molded itself around the doctor's jewel that it sent a spark across towards his hands as he moved the tongs away from the synthesized weapon. Stark took a distance and exhaled as he and the doctor watched as the scepter's light glowed brighter, "Thank God!" The doctor gave him an unenthused but grateful look, "Wooh, can't believe I actually used that reference in front of you. Was that blasphemous?" he muttered, looking at Fury and the doctor.

Fury spoke as he glared at Stark, "Thank you, Tony. I'll take it from here," Fury had tried to grasp the hilt of the scepter but for some reason it repelled his touch. He had urged the captain and his agents to try but still found themselves without avail and had thought to ask the only person they had trusted enough to wield it.

"What makes you think it will work for me?" Thor was only steps away from the scepter which reminded him of the treachery of his own brother that the sight of it disgusted him. He never liked bitterness of the past. It was not in his nature to rekindle the foreboding actions of the other Asgardian prince.

"Well, you kinda have this _King Arthur_ thing going on for you and your hammer," Clint quipped making Thor wince at his unfamiliar reference.

Thor eyed Fury, confused by the agent's statement, "It's a metaphor," Fury shrugged, "Just, try it,"

"As you wish," Thor was able to grasp the hammer but his hold did not last long. The scepter had reacted against his grip making him almost drop the weapon. This made everyone in the room uneasy that doctor quickly made her turn.

Upon touching the staff, Dylan was directed to a sudden vision of past events. Memories of Loki's misuse of the scepter flashed in her eyes that her mouthed stayed agape at what she had witnessed. She didn't know if she felt stricken or more enlightened regarding her newly made ally. He was always stern but never showed a tinge of cruelty to her in fact, he was...in his own way, gentle.

But she would not blind herself from the truth. Above all else, her honestly was principle and her entanglement with the Asgardian had to stay as it was in the beginning-cautious.

The scepter didn't repel her touch but she quickly withdrew her hand as if to escape more scenes of strife.

"You okay doc?" The captain asked in apprehension,

The doctor shook her head as her eyes fluttered downwards, "Yeah, just… anyway, I think I know how we can get it to work…"

Fury quickly caught up to the doctor's idea that he raised his voice at her, "NO! With all due respect doc but I don't think handing an enhanced weapon of mass destruction to the person who christened its label a wise move!"

Natasha stood in between the director and Dylan now, "W-wait, you want to _give_ the scepter to Loki?"

Thor frowned, "I would have to agree with the director. My brother is prone to temptation and I would not like to gamble in such situations like these,"

Dylan's face hardened, "I understand, however, the power contained in my necklace is connected with my life source and if you've noticed, holy magic reacts to his gauntlets. I could easily take it away from him if he tries anything against us," they did not know what to make of her statement. But they had to trust her. She was the only person credible enough to make such an postulation.

Fury gritted his teeth and drilled his fingers into his palm to fight his frustration, "Fine, bring him in,"

* * *

It was strange for Fury to send Barton to escort me to the laboratory where the rest of the Avengers were. Barton was not very fond of me considering the fact that I had bloodied his hands against his will. However, I guess the situation called for such appraisal as upon my entry, my brother took no time to waste and briefed me about the gravity of the matter at hand.

I smirked and eyed them one by one, "Let me clarify this. You are asking me to take authority of this?" I said stiffly gesturing my hand at the scepter. Natasha gave me stony looks.

Most of them remained silent save for Fury who was in obvious discomfort of my presence, "Yes," he said in disgust, "Just until we get the scryer and then _you_ return it to us. So _please_, give it a try," he said without much enthusiasm.

The doctor watched as I began to reach for the hilt of the blade. Upon contact, the enochian writings on my gauntlets began to glow and I lift the scepter effortlessly. This revelation made everyone stifle and perturbed,however, my triumph over their negative expectations was put into a halt as memories of my delinquent past filtered my thoughts that I momentarily loosen my grip. To hide my precariousness, I cautiously returned the staff to its mount. Still disturbed by my recollection.

Fury turned to the doctor, "You were right doc. I guess we really have no choice," he looked at me now without much kindness, "I'm keeping my eye on you," The others had followed Fury's leave with sour expressions but the doctor remained still in her position as she eyed the scepter. I had thought that she too was skeptical about my authority over the Chitaurian staff that I too started to turn to give her some space.

"Loki," I quickly turn half way as soon as she spoke, "We still have a few matters to discuss," Every time she spoke of my name, I felt myself quiver. I never felt any hesitation from her whenever she would address me in such informality. Where did she find solace to speak with me in her current state- unarmed and fully aware of a weapon within my reach?

I take a few steps towards her, slightly eyeing the scepter as I walked, "Such as?" there was no irritation in my voice, merely interest.

She looked directly into my eyes and settled near the scepter as she gestured for me to do the same, "The staff's core is powered by the energy stored inside my necklace. It is literally a part of my soul. Using such power could grant you—" I lifted my chin and wince making her halt her speech.

I faced her now. The glow of the Tesseract relic reminded me of her eyes the time she had manipulated the rain, "I am aware. There is no need for you to give me another warning. I have had enough of those lectures to last me for eons. I assure you that I will only do as I am bid," that was not exactly the whole truth and I had a feeling she knew for she eyed me quite intensely.

She nodded, "Of course,"

"Do you not trust me doctor? I will not blame you for being wise," my tone was not obstinate, it was however consequential.

She looked away, "I trust you enough, I guess. You did save my life not too long ago," I felt a guarded sincerity at her statement yet unlike common damsels, she did not emanate the soft-heartedness and swooned-over depictions of women at war.

I blinked and turned my attention to the glowing staff, "It was merely an act to reciprocate the kindness you have shown me,"

"Then, let me thank you for it by informing you that I had lied about my ability to control the link between you and the staff," she spoke, matter-of-factly.

I recoiled at the words that spilled out of her mouth and was left momentarily mute. My face etched a look mixed with prideful confusion and retort. _Why did she lie for me? She had nothing to gain from it._ _Was driving me into a state of conceitful pondering a trick?_

No. Not from her.

I fought myself from stuttering, "But, why? Th-"

She moved towards me so that we were face to face. Her expression was unyielding, "I _need_ to trust you. A lot of lives are at stake, including yours. My power is beyond penetration of one's free will, crossing bounds will do me no good," _Why was she telling me more than I should know?_

I took a step forward and frowned, "Then what are you asking me?"

The doctor took the scepter and handed it to me willingly. There was no fear in her eyes only a tiny space waiting to be filled with understanding and covenance. She gave me an intense look, "Your will. Don't make me bend it."

I nod as I take the scepter into my own hands. She watched as my eyes outline each detail of the familiar weapon.

"You mind if I ask you another thing?"

I look at her in all calmness and slight puzzlement, "I don't suppose why not?"

"What is your purpose for putting up with all of this?" there was no ill in her tone.

I lower the scepter, "What kind of answer do you seek from me doctor? For clearly, my past has stricken you so," I could see past her calm. She knew very well about what I had done. She had enough reasons and evidence to not award me with her trust. Or any of theirs for the matter.

She pursed her lips, "I didn't mean that as an insult,"

My eyes narrow and I approach her again, "Then what is it that you meant?"

"I only mean to hear the truth from you," her interjection was quick which calmed me.

"You have a means for me to rid of the side effect of my shackles. I intend to know more about its nature and only you can provide that information. I believe that my assistance is enough in exchange," I begin to question myself upon hearing my own words. _Was it really just that?_

She gave me a small smile, "You have been nothing but helpful and you have my word,"

"Then we have a settlement,"

She nodded, "I guess we do. Thank you for being honest with me," she said unblinking.

Honesty.

My brother had once proclaimed that I was a talented liar and I couldn't deny myself of that capability. But I wouldn't call it lying exactly. Nor manipulation. It was always wit. Intellect. And yet, despite every fiber of my being is keeping me from many truths, I could not bring myself to tell her of what Mephistophiles had revealed. It wasn't her burden to bear. It is truly at my own expense that they have taken interest in her abilities. They are intending to use her to lure me and obtain what was promised to them. Another reason for her not to trust me.

Even I too was feeling less secure about myself. About many things...

My eyes follow her as she begins to make her leave that I had forgotten than I had the scepter in my hand. I could easily make my escape…control her even and rejoin my army, and yet, I do not see relevance in attempting so that before she left, I could not help but speak once more, in utmost genuineness, "One's purpose could change as time drifts with it but that is no measure of the extent to pursue what one perceives as right and just,"

She turns and looks at me in an unwavering expression, "Our fate _is_ how we make it. I understand your sentiment. You don't have to explain to me,"

She knew at that moment that I still had doubts about my current alliance. She knew and even _I_ knew that I was not to being truthful about the consequences of handing me the one thing which could give me freedom. She gives me a look of heed, "A person's past does not determine the person's true character,"

_What did she intend to make me feel about her words? Was it molded out of sympathy? Or Pity? Or…trust?_

She did not wait for me to retaliate and continued to walk out of the room. I could not find anything suitable to say to return her proclamation and could only think of doing what I believe to be the best way to reciprocate her benevolence. _The truth. _

"Dylan wait," I pleaded.

* * *

The S.H.I.E.L.D director had opted for a private meeting between him and his agents to discuss his lingering doubts.

Fury spoke sternly, "Agents, from now on, keep on watch,"

Natasha cocked a brow, "From what exactly?"

Fury sighed, "The doctor, Romanov. I don't think we can fully trust her with this anymore,"

Barton clicked his tongue, "I had a feeling you'd say that but I don't think we have anything to worry about sir,"

"Oh there are a number of things we should be worried about agent Barton. Trusting her is just one of them,"

His agents exchanged looks which the director shrugged off.

"So," Natasha paused to edit, what do you suppose we do now?"

Fury folded his arms, "I think it's time for us to have a serious conversation with John, don't you think?"

* * *

**AN: End of Chapter 6. So, how did you guys like it? Feel some 'tension' between Loki and Dylan? and why is Fury acting all Nazi eh? Dum-dum-dum! Tune in!**

**Notice how the POV shifts from LOKI's to 3RDPPOV, hope you guys weren't confused.**

A request of reviews before I update would be nice :)

NEWS: I'm taking the whole demanding of reviews off the radar. If you wanna review by all means, thank you for your suggestions. Though I still highly appreciate it and it makes me more inspired to write haha. Thank you for SayWhatNow Night. RCB, sorry about this but anyway, I know you understand.

**Only one more chapter until part 1 concludes and then I will be taking a break from the writing for a long time…nah just kidding, just until I get my thesis settled and all. Anywho, I'll post as soon as I get the time. If by next month I get a good review, I'll post a whole chapter even before my break ends. Also, my offer for a significant OC to be named after the best reviewer stands.**

**The Asgardian Rune reference was from the ULTIMATE THOR #1 Graphic Novel :)**

**John Dee (Faustus) and Mephistophiles is roughly based on Goethe's literary history.**

**The Astrological Clock in Prague, Abkhazia and Mortlake Brewery is real.**

**The Avengers ©Marvel**

**Dylan Sinclair ©LVS**

**Cover Photo (c) Kibbitzer via DA**

**(P.S. tweet me –loligoth_13, for updates, suggestions and random blurbs ).**

**-LVS**

* * *

_Readers' Corner: Here's a section where I TRY to answer/respond to your queries/PMs/reviews. :)_

Where is Bruce Banner?

-I've been pondering on whether or not to include him in this fic since I'm not really as familiar with the Hulk unlike the others however, I have already thought of a short segment/cameo for him. He's alive and kicking in this AU world haha.

anddddd Agent Coulson?

-I really wanna say something but I can't. :)

You didn't explain croatoan!

-It's not really relevant. It's just a label for a specific type of demon. Mephistophiles practically explained it during his convo with Loki. It's a parasitic demon type of thing. Waitforit.

LokixDylan action? HELLOOO (quoted from a uhm certain reader)

-YES, there will be more than just silly gestures (kick it up a notch Loki!). I want to build up their obvious attraction tastefully and don't worry, no friendzone thing will occur (save maybe for the Captain).

Why are the Chitauri back? Does that mean Thanos will make a cameo?

-Let's just say that I'm trying my best to keep the timeline at par with the MCU of the Avengers and Avengers 2.

Dylan...Why Dylan?

-The history of her name comes from DMC fanfic world origin. She had to be named from an androgynous point of view due to a specific story line involving well a sibling. I would've used Beatrice (her second name) but I would've given away alot already ahaha

_Keep your queries and reviews comin'! Also, I do reply to EVERY review via PM so, don't worry, I actually read them ;)_


	7. Seven: MacBeth

**"Well I guess, it's worth a look…"**

_An Avengers Fan Fiction_

* * *

**Seven: Macbeth**

* * *

LOKI

* * *

There is a soft but distant breeze that encapsulates my lungs. To breathe at a harmonious pace was lost to my senses. There was no melancholy at that moment. Only fear. Necessary fear.

Truth.

There was no holding back now. If we wanted to settle things in the shortest and most cost-effective way, she had to know about my Chitauri situation. She was involved, gravely and it was my entire fault. The least I could do was give her a forewarning. If only I could bring myself to think of the most suitable way to break it down to her. _There was none._

"Loki? What is it?" She looked at me expectantly as I struggled for words. She waited patiently for my reply though I could sense that she had already readied herself for the worse.

"There are more complications to your bounty than precedented and I am afraid that I am at fault,"

She took a step in, "What are you talking about?" her brows weaved together.

I exhaled and drew courage before I spoke, "When I was-"

"Hey guys, have you see-" before I could finish speaking, Stark conveniently strolled inside the lab and gave the both of us thieving looks. I frowned. I have not thought of relaying my information to anyone else before the doctor. To make matters worse, my brother stood at his back, mirroring the same expression. _Do the men here have no courtesy at all?_

The doctor copied my look of annoyance and then shifted her attention to the two.

"Are we intruding brother?"

My lip jerked sidewards, "As a matter of fact you were," my tone was condescending.

Stark grinned as he folded his arms, "Ooh, interesting!"

Dylan sighed and shook her head at Stark's statement as Thor eyed me with much curiosity, "Your imagination is astounding Tony but that's not what he meant. I was just explaining the nature of the—"

What exactly had they thought I meant? Did they not understand proper civility?

Stark shrugged as he continued to beam at us and picked up something on the table, "You don't have to explain to me, I just came here for my phone," He readied himself to leave and pointed his finger at the three of us, "I'll leave you two and your future in law to catch up-eth or whatever," and then he left. I could never take that man seriously. His kind never seemed of the sophisticated sort. He may display a humorous wit of appeal but I could never distinguish his bounds of mockery.

"Excuse Stark and his wordplay gentlemen," she cleared her throat and made way for my brother, "Can I help you with anything Thor?"

"Fury has asked me to call on you to discuss our tactics regarding the scryer. Also, I would like a moment to talk with my brother if, as you say, I am not interrupting your conversation?" The doctor had eyed me with a quiet reservation and I knew instantly that it was a signal for me to keep our conversation on hold, regrettably.

I bit on my tongue to keep from cursing, we were losing time but I could not simply cause an extravagant panic.

"No, not all. If you will me excuse me then,"

"Of course," we both had said in chorus as we watched her leave.

My brother upon seeing apt distance from her treading grabbed my arm and led me inside, "What is this gesture for?" I said, appalled but unsurprised.

Thor's eyes narrowed, "I had cautioned you to keep an acceptable distance from the doctor. They do not fully trust you; do not give them the opportunity to place more restrictions on you!"

I nudged my arm free, "Why do you give me such petty lectures about my relationship with the doctor? Have I not earned enough trust during the course of my saving her?"

"That's not what I meant! She _does_ trust you…"

I looked at him icily, I couldn't believe that of all people he would be giving me such a speech, "And you see this as a problem?" His gallivanting about our past musings grew less important to me as time passed.

He growled, "Do not toy with us brother. You are given a great burden to obtain the scryer and the magic that will be placed in your hands could give us all great reason to become wary!"

I raised my voice, "I do not intend to betray her!"

Thor's face began slumped, "I trust that you don't. It is _us_, who remain at uncertainty. Be warned brother, I will not tolerate insolence!" And with that he stormed out of the room.

He had every right to say those words to me. I didn't trust myself completely either. If only, I would see much clarity in things and on people. _If only reason would aid my senses to see nothing but the truth of peace._

I eye the scepter now with imbalanced emotions. At some angles I view it in disgust and self-hate but on vantage point, I see it as none other than a rare opportunity.

Again, I am given power.

It was all up to me to yield its control.

For better or for worse.

* * *

"You wanted to see me director?" the doctor's tone was consenting as she approached the S.H.I.E.L.D agents in the control room. Fury nodded at Hill and Romanov and permitted their leave.

Fury rubbed his chin, "Doc, I'm afraid I have to ask you to stay behind. Your presence could attract more of those things and the square is full of civilians. Mephistophiles could easily set it up as a trap,"

Dylan merely blinked, "You seem to have it all figured out. I don't seem like I have a choice," her voice had an edge to it.

The director took a few steps forward and gave the doctor a look of concern, "Take the time to recover. Once they get hold of the scryer, they'll go directly to you,"

She took a moment to assess Fury who clearly wouldn't budge. She sighed in defeat, "Don't let them take too long,"

He gave her a confident grimace, "Copy that,"

* * *

It was strange of Fury to proclaim their shift to guard John Dee when the doctor found no one on watch. She didn't intend to pay him a visit, if anything, the _croatoan_ connection between the scientist and Mephistophiles posed as a danger to her, still, she had to know what else John Dee could have told the S.H.I.E.L.D agents which lead to their doubts.

She didn't mean to use her innate ability to see through one's words. Prying wasn't something she had wanted to be known for, however, the situation was very delicate and any distorted matriculation about her could cause chaos.

Fury was lying to her and possibly giving orders to the others to keep her on watch and the only way to confirm this was to confront the seed of this mess.

"Ohohohohohoho, come to decipher more secrets dearie?" John's voice was sickening. Despite his youthful exterior, the age and rasp of his voice lay evident. John was tied to a metallic chair where electric cables wound around his limbs. Enochian sealing enchantments were etched on the ropes as well as the whole interior of his cell just as the doctor had instructed. This had prevented Mephistophiles and other demons from entering. John held vital knowledge. He was of the few who were able to read from the pages of the prophecy. Should more secrets about her powers get exposed, things could go more out of balance.

The doctor closed the entryway, "I've come for more truths. What did you tell Fury about me?" She spoke with much authority. She was a feet away from the man when she had stopped approaching. Her eyes never blinked, "Don't let me force the truth out of you,"

John snarled, "Why everything important of course!"

"Meaning?"

He didn't answer and merely looked adaze at the half-angel.

The doctor's eyes luminated into an eerie shade of blue and white light. She began to move closer to him with a straightened face. This made John churn in a grotesque enthrallment, "Good, you are beginning to feel comfortable in your true form!"

"Enough!" Dylan wound her hand around Dee's neck and forced his eyes to make contact with hers, still ablaze. Dee turned white and silent and yet the doctor remained without much kindness and soon enough her thoughts began to echo John Dee's voice.

"_She will flee and leave you to the care of those dark forces._

_Possessing the scryer is her freedom. _

_It is her own escape from condemnation! _

_She will turn on you, with or without a fight._

_Pity…_

_With her blood, no one need be stricken with any plague._

_The afterlife would be a thing of the past!_

_I see it in your eyes…your calculations…__…your desires..._

_Your will to use her for your own inclinations._

_It is possible. Follow my instructions and she will be yours to control!"_

She pulled away as soon as she sensed someone draw near Dee's prison. There was more to his lecture that she needed to know. Soon enough, the truth about the prophecy would surface but doubt still filtered her thoughts. There were a number of details she could not reveal, it was too dangerous. Not just for her but to the people who know her. And she was running out of time…and options.

* * *

For six hundred years, the gothic structure has stood as a literal symbol of man's victory against the rage of time and nature. Beholding the masterpiece was of no chore. I stare mindlessly at the Astrological Clock.

I had arrived in Prague with the Captain and Romanov and as instructed, we were all dressed in civilian clothing. Stark and Thor had taken to the outskirts to secure our perimeter and keep civilians from our location. A number of them still lingered near however; it did not matter much if anyone does witness our actions. We didn't really have time to do some preparations. We were just there to keep disruptions at minimum.

It had bothered me that the doctor did not come with us. I would understand Fury's sentiment and caution however, I do not deem it wise for him to keep her out of familiar ground. _Was he trusting me with this endeavor? Or testing me?_

The captain motioned for us to follow him at the center of the square. I walked in between the two Avengers. Romanov kept a keen eye on my movement and even readied her gun if I were to act out of proportion. It amused me. She is not one to forget grievances so easily.

"I think this is close enough," I nodded at Rogers' statement, "Stick to the plan-grab and go," he placed a hand to my shoulders and gave me space. Typical soldier. Rigid follower of those at high command, putting at least priority their own decisiveness. A pathetic misuse of power and authority. Still, if I have learned anything from the man lost in time, it was to not take him lightly.

I stood lateral to the ancient structure now as I summoned the scepter to appear.

"Remember the doctor's instructions," Romanov quipped.

"How could I forget?" I didn't look at her as I replied. I didn't see it as a necessary gesture, "Let us begin,"

* * *

The moving craft parked at a nearby isolated plantation just outside Prague. Fury had ordered Romanov and Stark to use a jet to transport them to avoid attention. Splitting the Avengers was a risky but necessary choice. They had to hold their front and but stay concealed at the same time. A number of eyes were upon them-watching and waiting. Some of them, more familiar than they know snd one false move could mean a great disadvantage.

"Came to pay Dee a visit?" agent Barton met the doctor halfway towards the exit of the left wing. He looked at the disgruntled doctor, "Doc?"

She shook her head, "I just needed to clear some things, and you?"

Barton flicked his thumb on his lip and blinked, "Taking my shift. Can't be too sure with security by the likes of him,"

"Of course. Oh, have you seen the director? I need to talk to him,"

The agent ruffled his hair as he gave the doctor an inquisitive look, "Yep, he's by the air dock,"

The doctor had an instant inkling that Fury had already cautioned his agents about Dee's revelation about her. If what he said was true, she would have known. Yet, she didn't know what to make of it either. There was no certainty of her future. There never was.

Afterall, the secret of keeping secrets of fate was to have no knowledge of your own.

"Thank you," she said and left as the agent continued to watch her leave. John Dee's eyes followed her trail. He was filled with delight as he watched.

His plan was working. He had instilled a very tempestuous yet corrupt idea on their minds.

John Dee closed his eyes and let his teeth dangle as he smiled, _Mephistophiles was right._

* * *

I raised the scepter as I willed it to release energy from its core to the clock. It was overwhelming to feel its power embrace every bit of my bodice. She has told me that the necklace was part of her lifesource and if so, I would not question its majesty. The power from the staff was strong and it had connected to my gauntlets with much ease. At that moment, I felt light and secure. _I am connected to her, that's why I feel stronger._

"_I believe that the staff could provide you with some sort of enchantment to ward from the poison on your wrists. Use it well."_

Her words recoiled in my thoughts as I watched the fluid strings of angelic magic pierce through the astrological clock. A gust of wind sent Romanov and Rogers aback as they watched.

The discs glowed in an eerie radiance as each roman number outlined itself in fire. The roaring of the gears of the clockwork sent a maniacal churning to the people around Old Town, Prague. The mid day sun began to descend and at hindsight, I saw what was to come. _This magic was not meant for mortal eyes._

"Argh!" The Captain clutched his head and began to stumble. Romanov went to his side as she too began to fight for balance.

I gave them a wry look but Romanov protested to my hesitance, "Keep going! We're fine!"

One by one, the mortals near our region fell to their knees, left astray and unconscious, the Captain and Romanov included. I had begun to wonder if my brother and Stark were experiencing the same thing but I was too distracted by the overwhelming feeling of familiarity…control…authority…the seduction of power.

The doctor's tear-drop jewel lit the scepter's core creating a visible connection between the unmoving star-hand of the Astrological clock. As if the staff began to dictate unspoken instructions, I positioned myself in a solid stance and began to pull on the gravitic thread. The force was strong and contrasting, clearly, some sort of protective enchantment was sealing the scryer. It felt like breathing underwater- heavy, slow and aggravating and yet there was no stopping.

I had thought that controlling the power of the scepter would not require me much effort. It had remembered my use of it, it had remembered its master but alas, an easy journey was never meant for me. The star dial began to move, but the luminance and the gear turning began to slow and as soon as the star had pointed to one, the clock froze.

The black and silver spherical Luna attached to one of the clock's hands pointed to the Libra zodiac, whilst the hand with the sunburst pointed towards the skeletal figure.

Each spherical layer of the clock began to shake and as I continued to send waves of light to control its pull, all seemed to calm, a blinding light covered the entirety of the square making me loosen my grip on the staff. I heard the shifting of gears stop and as the white began to fade, every clockwork device comprising the astronomical object dispersed and began to mold itself into a miniature trophy made completely out of the glass and metal. The zodiac and numbers of each lining transfigured into similar enochian writings carved in fire. As the flames parched, the scryer's core began to crystallize and formed a crown-like structure at its peak. The scryer began to fall forcing me to speedily ready myself to catch it, containing the scepter within myself as I did with the Tesseract.

The scryer felt weightless as it landed on my palms but upon contact, my gauntlets seared my skin as more writings embedded itself on the metal. I almost let go of the thing but I could not allow its destruction just for some measly pain. It was far too important.

The midday sun collected enough shadows to turn light into sudden darkness and as my comrades began to regain consciousness, it became a clear cue for us to return.

The scryer was in my possession. The key to my freedom and folly.

_The very representation of a choice between honor and pride. _

* * *

"Mephistophiles has hidden the scryer in Prague correct; however, the prophecy tied to it is elsewhere,"

"What are you talking about Dee? What kind of prophetic message could we even get from obtaining the scryer?" the untimely visitor's voice was hoarse and dominating.

Dee's eyes wandered inside the cell, "Let me make things more clear shall we?"

"Upon obtaining the scryer, the clock will reveal a portion of the prophecy through its hands, lucky for you; I have knowledge about the scripture and deciphered the meaning of the said prophecy,"

The man scoffed, "You expect me to believe you were able to read from the forbidden text after it was proclaimed to be hidden by the Angel Raziel?"

John Dee clicked his tongue, "Indeed. The knowledge of the text is not limited through writing. Raziel had rallied his secret to a demon lord that he trusted remember? And well, demons aren't very keen on keeping secrets. I have manipulated and tortured a number of key demons and they have told me that the Nephilim before the birth of Raziel's daughter were taught some secrets," he spoke matter-of-factly.

"What are you implying?"

Dee let out a harsh laughter making the man inside his cell flinch, "Do you know what _croatoan_ are? We are a rare kind of bounded creatures between a mortal and a demon and though parasitic, we are capable to do great many things. It was not very hard for Mephistophiles to gather a number of those holy things and I, in turn found the use of dark magic as torture to be quite of a hobby,"

"You despicable little shi-!"

"Hush-hush now! I am about to narrate the good parts!"

The man in the shadows punched the wall, "And what part is that?"

"The uncrypted truth behind the symbolic prophecy,"

* * *

My brother and Stark had arrived just in time to help his comrades to the plane. We had to leave before anyone or anything was to catch sight of us. It was strange that we were not greeted by Mephistophiles or any lesser demons for that matter. _Why have they made my endeavor too easy?_

Stark had taken command of flying the craft as the Captain and Romanov were still left in much unsettlement. Thor sat across me and eyed me with a disquieted fixture.

I narrowed my eyes, "I had nothing to do with their state if that is what you are implying,"

"I am aware. Forgive my treatment, I am merely trying to be fair," his expression softened.

I didn't bother to respond. His attempt to create some brotherly truce was always so juvenile.

"How are your wrists?" he continued,

"Does your idea of passing time include this small talk?"

He shrugged, "I'm just concerned,"

I sighed, "The doctor has been very helpful. They do not bother me as much. You should know, you helped father choose my shackles. Surely, you know of its nature,"

Thor frowned and looked down, "I do not. Which is why I am concerned. I do not think the material was smithed from Asgardian steel nor any dying star,"

I lifted my chin as I blindly traced the writings on my gauntlets, "Then you and I have more things alike than I expected,"

* * *

"I am beginning to lose patience with you Dee!"

John Dee etched a smug look, "Remember my descriptions of the placements? Well here are its meanings. Listen well for I will not repeat my words,"

He nodded stiffly.

"The roman number one signifies the black book of Enoch or the lost text of universal secrets. The Libra is a symbol for balance and justice and as the Astronomical clock depicted death; its sister must create an equal to its prophecy. It must speak of origin and I can tell you now that for years we've been blind to it,"

The man's eyes furrowed, "Another clock? Origin-?"

John Dee smiled, "The second clock is seated near what they call the pillar of angels. Two of these angels surround the clock holding two important symbols- a bell and an hourglass. Bells according to some religious folklore are considered as signs of entrance or welcoming. They say that an angel gets its wings whenever you hear it ring while some would say that the sound is simply the opening of gates. And who do we know as an angel without wings? Who do we know is an angel who is bound in a prophetic hour glass eh?"

"So, the second clock is literally at the place of her birth?"

"Ohohoho! Very good! From her name, _Sean Cleaurxe _as in English Sinclair, you can find the second clock in France. Sadly, as Prague's prophetic clock turned, so did its twin and not a single one of you was there to witness it. Pity, destroying the bell could have given you more time but alas, it has already wrung,"

The man interrogating the mad scientist was left mute. A chance to stop the chaos had passed them so easily and vastly that it made him sick to think that they were all capable of fulfilling it. He trusted the doctor but, if she knew about the clock's twin in her birthplace, then why would she conceal it?

"It is very interesting to point out how these manmade things were structured from the book of prophecies as both a warning and a chance," Dee continued.

"So what you're saying is, those people were—"

"Nephilim of course!"

The man cleared his throat and looked cold-heartedly at Dee, "And as last of the Nephilim, what does fate say for her?"

Dee's eyes closed as he grimaced, "We must never forget though that to balance hope, chaos must persist."

"Enough of your riddles!"

"Don't you see? The star in the prophecy _is_ Bellatrix. The sun points to a significant event. Death,"

Fury's mind was haunted by Dee's revelation during the interrogation. If his interpretation was accurate then the doctor might really be just trying to escape her fate at their expense. But why should he believe in that wretched fool? He had more reason to trust the doctor than him.

"Nick?" the doctor's voice cascaded from behind. Fury's turn was filled with hesitation. The doctor was no fool; it was obvious that she was already aware of their doubts.

"I was expecting that you would come to see me," his tone had no alarm to it.

The doctor went to his side now, "You were?"

Fury truly did. He had made up his mind about the doctor. He was mistaken. He was right to trust her after all and narrating her intended future was the right thing to do.

If only he could do such thing.

Fury would. Without hesitation.

However, he couldn't. It wasn't because he had anymore doubts. It was because he too was tricked and trapped. He was physically present in the doctor's eyes but he did not think in the manner that he willed.

"Of course, in fact, I have discovered something very vital to our premise,"

Fury's mouth continued to utter words but it did not come from him. He was trapped inside his own thoughts. Screaming out warnings that the doctor could not hear.

Fury's hand went to his pocket as he continued to converse with the doctor but he wasn't truly placing much attention on her.

"You're not really making much sense,"

The possessed Fury fiddled with the object in his hand and concealed it as he turned to face the doctor, "Then perhaps, this will help make things clearer!"

Fury lunged an open syringe at the side of the doctor's neck, quickly drawing blood. The doctor, caught off guard fell to her knees and reflexively soothed the side of her neck where the needle pricked her skin.

"Thank you for your kind cooperation doctor!" Mephistophiles' voice escaped Fury's lips as he spoke and dangled the now blood-filled vial.

The doctor kicked herself off the ground and sped towards the escaping Fury. She quickly drew her blade on the side of her hilt as the demon in the director's body jumped towards the field.

"_Te solvere daemonium!" _she hissed.

* * *

As soon as we had entered the air-base, Thor had instructed me to bring the scryer directly to the doctor. He didn't offer to accompany me. I take it that it was his way of showing me some trust in the least however, I could still sense skepticism within him even as he went to assist Romanov and the captain to the infirmary.

"I'll be off to report to Fury, you think you could manage your way towards the lab?" Barton asked, in a half-humorous manner.

I began to walk away, "Your mockery is amusing,"

I heard the Hawkeye smirk as he went on his way. I paid little mind to him as for the rest of the agents parading around the ship. Having a former enemy stroll around them so casually caused them such a stir but they all knew that if it weren't for me, they wouldn't even have a chance at surviving this mess.

The scryer was secure inside my coat pocket. I had not thought of holding it since it burned more enochian writings on my skin. However, I was certain that the occurrence was unusual.

I walked with much haste. There was still the matter of the Chitauri that the doctor should be made known.

The door of the lab slid open, "I have the-" my temple creased at the sight of no one to greet my entrance. She had specifically told me that she would wait for our arrival here. I would not think of her as someone who lost track of appointments.

"Change of plans," it was Barton's voice that made me shift my position. He had slung his bow across his chest and looked at me with a devilish glare, "_I'll _deliver the scryer,"

I cocked a brow, "Why the sudden change? Your talk with Fury must have been brief,"

He snarled as he let out his opened palm, "The scryer, please,"

I scoffed and took a step forward, "I was ordered to hand the scryer to the doctor, not you,"

"Then I guess you leave me with no choice," Barton's skin began to transform into tin silver.

"You think of me as a fool? I've seen through you!" I drew the scepter and lept to attack the silver Barton. As soon as he deflected my first blow to the side of his face, the replicated Barton's true form began to surface. _Chitauri!_

The Chitauri grabbed my collar and dragged me towards an open portal. I didn't get a chance to free myself from him; I was too preoccupied with keeping the scryer, "Let us gauge the real fool among us as I let you face your fate!"

* * *

Mephistophiles' laughter echoed throughout the field and the chase became more and more difficult for the doctor since hurting him would mean hurting Fury as well.

The doctor swung her blade at the tall weeds and grains and looked from side to side for any sign of the demon, "Come out you coward!"

"Oh, I'm here!" Mephistophiles struck the doctor from behind sending her plummetting a few feet away from where he stood. The doctor quickly used her hands as leverage as she kicked herself off the ground and glided towards him, dagger in hand. Dylan quickly shifted her hold on the blade so that the blunt edge would be ready for her use. She slashed at the demon who continued to dance to her movement, "What's with the hesitation Nephilim? You could end this once and for all!"

Dylan's eyes began to glow and her whole body began to outline itself in white flames, "Emundetur vitiis humanae,"

Fury's body began to tighten and shiver, "You won't get rid of me that easily!" Mephistophiles jumped towards her and the doctor without hesitation went to greet him. She was still covered in white smoke as she continued to mouth the words of the rite to relieve Fury from his possession. She was able to pin him down by forcing his head on the ground and using her weight to hold his trunk from moving, "…in nomine Dei tui me discutiam malum!" Mephistophiles fought from her hold but as black smoke withdrew from Fury's bodice, so did his attachment fade.

"Doc! What are you doing?" The doctor's eyes momentarily left Fury however she did not stop mouthing the words. She had no time to explain and this did not work to her favor. Barton drew an arrow and pointed it at her as he hurried towards them.

Being sly and manipulative as any demon could be, Mephistophiles took that as an opportunity to counter, "Barton! Sh-she's possessed! She's summoning them to us!" The doctor spoke louder and sent more white energy to his chest making Mephistophiles as Fury wail in pain.

Barton shot an arrow to disarm the doctor. The impact caused the doctor to loosen her hold on Mephistophiles buying him enough time to break free from her. Barton shot another arrow towards her which she easily deflected.

"Don't listen to him! _He's _possessed!" The doctor eyed Barton with much authoritative pleading that as soon as Barton cocked another arrow, he was left stunned and confused at who to aim for.

Mephistophiles raised his arms, "Clint, remember what we talked about,"

Dylan took a step forward making Barton flinch, "John Dee is lying! He's making it look like I'll betray you!"

Before Barton could respond, a portal opened sending down Loki and a Chitauri who shifted into the form of agent Hill crashing in the field.

"Maria!" Barton yelled.

The distraction worked for Mephistophiles' advantage as he quickly grabbed the blade and ran towards the other imposter with the vial in hand, "She's working with Loki! We have to get the scryer!"

And without another word, Barton shot the arrow, aiming straight at the doctor's chest.

* * *

The rest of the Avengers went to gather around the conference room as planned. The tardiness of some of them caused them to lose patience. Clearly, something had happened.

"I can't find Fury and the doctor anywhere. Clint's already searching outside,"

Thor jumped to his feet, "Agent Hill, I don't suppose my brother is nowhere to be found as well?"

Maria's expression shifted from worry to shock, "I'll have everyone on patrol!" Maria Hill quickly barked orders at the remainder of the agents as the rest of the Avengers mobilized and armed themselves.

Fury's order kept on winding itself over and over again in Romanov's mind. She had feared for things to turn the way as Dee had warned. She knew better than to trust a demon's pet.

If only she could find them in time.

_Clint will find them in time._

She trusted him, will all her heart but she knew him well enough to be equipped with the fragilities loyalty. She would not forgive herself if he were to encounter another case of mistaken judgment.

Never again.

* * *

A blue spark crashed against the arrow before it could even reach the doctor. The shot came from the scepter in Loki's possession.

The doctor glanced at her savior with widened eyes but quickly shuffled to keep Barton from getting a clean shot.

"Now do you believe me?" Mephistophiles turned to Barton.

"What are you looking at Asgardian? Your enemy is here!"

* * *

"You cower behind the skin of a mortal when your words don't impose any threat to me!" I swerved the scepter at the Chitauri. He was not as strong nor as fast as I expected of him. He was only meant to be a distraction.

"The Other would be happy to hear that you have not lost your battle instincts," The extra terrestrial grabbed the hilt of the staff and used its weight against me, knocking me back a few steps. Before I countered, the creature in agent Hill's form fired a shot at me. The bullet grazed my hand, enough to cut my skin. A small amount of blood trickled down my hand but I paid it no mind.

In my peripheral, I could see Barton and Fury corner the doctor. I did not fear human arsenal doing her much harm, however, seeing Fury point the holy blade at her as his eyes changed into the same blackness as that of Mephistophiles, I knew instantly that there was no sure way for the doctor to fight against the demon without harming Fury in the process. She had to get the blade back.

The Chitauri began to turn to its real form as it crashed its whole body at me. I lost balance, making the scryer fall out of my robe. I quickly grabbed the thing with my wounded hand before the silver creature did. The screech of the Chitauri caught Barton's attention and he had witnessed me turn the vile creature into ashes.

Barton was about to disarm Fury but as soon as he turned, Fury grabbed his bow and knocked him unconscious with the doctor's blade. The doctor was about to summon holy flames when a large hooded figure apparrated in front of her. She changed her stance in defense but still eyed Fury with much calculation.

_It was him. The Other._

"About time you showed up," Mephistophiles said, grinning. The Other merely looked at Fury.

It didn't take another moment for me to think of my next move, "Stay away from her!" I fired towards my former liege, sending a huge surge of cosmic waves which thrust him away from the doctor. She took that as a cue to charge at Fury.

The possessed director fought her back with her own blade which she willingly avoided. So it was true after all, the weapon that she uses to dispose of those things could be the only object that could cause her end. And a demon in possession of her blade was not a delightful fete.

As soon as the Chitauri lord began to rise, Fury took the vial out of his pocket and threw it towards him. The doctor ran to retrieve the container filled with her blood as did my former acquaintance. I had managed to fling my nemesis aside with my scepter before he could hurt the doctor. The vial landed a few feet away from us, still intact. But when I thought all was close at an end, Mephistophiles transported behind the doctor with enraged eyes. The translucent blade shone as it met the crescent's light, slowly diving and making its way to pierce through the doctor's flesh, "No!" I yelped.

"Ugh!"

Thanos began to fade, as the portal he had summoned created an exit for him. He gave me a look of disdain as he took the vial and watched me stand helpless and fuming. The scepter slipped through my fingers and I began to fall on my knees. Mephistophiles drove the blade deeper into my chest before I could even catch my breath.

The doctor scrambled to her feet and beckoned more of her flames as she ran towards my direction, "Loki!" her voice was frantic. A multitude of demons began to squander around her and she hastily fought her way towards us. But it was all too late.

_Was that a tone of concern? Was her pleading of genuine care?_

"You're always in our way filthy half-breed and now look where it has brought you!" He looked at me with much spite and I could only wind my hands around the blade to keep it from moving any further in. My vision began to blur and I could taste the copper in my mouth. It was true after all; her blade could kill anything and anyone, "What is this regard you have for the Nephilim that's holding you back eh? You are a fool to be blind to the fact that she will be the death of you!"

I reward his statement by giving him an unenthused but sarcastic expression, "Ehe...he...hehe..." I coughed out blood as I looked at him, unyieldingly, "You...haven't…won…yet…" blood trickled down my chin.

"No. But thank you for giving us a head start," He grabbed the scryer from me and abruptly lifted the blade away from my chest. The blood that fell from my skin quickly blanketed the floor as I fell, limp and losing consciousness.

The pain was excruciating. It felt like the blade had released an acidic solution to melt my insides. _I do not regret my actions though. I do not blame her._

A meteoric light encircled the place where Mephistophiles stood and I could hear him curse in pain as he struggled to fight the flames engulfing him. Before I could blink, I saw the doctor literally draw Fury out of the flame leaving Mephistophiles trapped and suffocating in the ward she had built. I couldn't see her clearly but I could've sworn that she looked different. Inhuman.

Fury was unconscious and Mephistophiles drawing what was left of his power, escaped, taking with him the scryer.

A harsh pang drabbled in my chest that I could not help but yell out to relieve my throbbing. The doctor went to my side and quickly pressed on my wound to keep it from bleeding, "I'm not going to let you die! You hear me?" I heard her clearly and perfectly but I knew all things to be good and true. She continued to mouth soothing and encouraging words towards me as she tried to contain the blood from leaving my chest and all I did was stare at her in awe. _She did care after all. I had meant something to her in the least. _

She was a healer. This was her living but even_ I_ knew that no mortal medicine could relinquish my suffering and yet I still felt safe with her by my side. The sight of her was a comfort. A rare one at that and I wouldn't choose anyone else to be with me if this were to be my last terrestrial minutes.

My eyes began to hurdle into a close but she shook me to keep me from losing consciousness, "No! We've come too far for this!"

"There isn't…much time…"

Her face fell and I could see that she was close to tears and yet not one fell from her cheeks. She was determined to fulfill her proclamation. She always was. That's what I most admired about her. _Her fearlessness from the truth._

I raised my hand and let it caress her cheek, redding her face with my blood. My gesture made her flinch and her hand went from my chest to my own, "You _will _live through all of this," her tone had urgency to it. It was almost pleading. This gave me a little serenity. I have never seen her look at me with such a longing tenderness. I wasn't quite sure if it was the illusions that near-death had always equipped itself. If it was all just a ruse then I would have been happy to live out my last moments in lies.

I began to feel the cold hand of death grip my heart but I could not bring myself to close my eyes. She was still very beautiful and pure despite the consequences of my situation. I felt content though. I deserved all of this in fact, it was all too much and at the same time I wasn't worthy.

I was dying…in honor.

And even if there was no one else to witness it, I was satisfied that I have come to this state within good reason-

Her.

* * *

_End of Part I: Iridescence._

* * *

**AN: WARNING! LARGE AMOUNT OF TEXT!**

**To my dear readers, you have read the upper statement right. This is the last chapter for the first part of the story. I understand if you have an urge to flame at me. I really wanted to clear a few things that probably made your mind bleed in the past due to guessing but I also had to restrain myself from giving out too much (actually I DID give out too much). Sorry if it took a while. I scrapped two versions of this chapter and decided to go with this one. Took me a day!**

**With that said, I am formally announcing that this fic will be in three parts with an indefinite number of chapters per part. (Trust me, I don't think it will be as long as the first). I am in conquest of building up each character in the story, especially the tandem (LokixDylan) and I do hope that Loki's partial confession was enough to keep you rooting for them. It was bitter sweet to write this chapter since George R.R. Martin keeps on popping up in my mind (if you understand my reference, then be warned!) I have already written parts of the first 2 chapters of part 2 and I am contemplating on my next plans for the story. It's practically finished in my head but I can't seem to get satisfied with some parts so it might take quite a while for my next update. As you've read in the previous chapters, I am quite busy with my thesis and OJT and balancing my schoolwork with leisure isn't really easy, so I do hope you will all be patient with me. **

**I am going to finish this I swear.**

**Also, check out my profile page here/ my twitter (loligoth_13)/ my tumblr ( blog/tightropesandringsoffire, ****I usually update during Friday**) for some information/updates and mostly random blurbs. I would love to get to know you all! (I posted something on my tumblr account for you guys)

**I dedicate this chapter to you all, for your glad tidings! (Shoutout to my real life buddy, sam!)**

**And of course all gratuitous feeling goes to Tom Hiddleston. For if not the imagination of your voice dictating the story inside my head, none of this would be possible. :))**

**Hope to hear and read from you! I learn alot from your reviews/PMs. :)**

**-LVS**

* * *

Disclaimers:

All Angelic, prophetic and holy reference is purely fiction. I have created my own interpretation of its history and is by no means a way of disrespect or blasphemy against any (church particularly the Christian). I have strong beliefs which lay separate from my world of fictional writing.

The Latin phrase "Te solvere daemonium!" roughly translates to "You will pay demon!" and the rite passage "Emundetur vitiis humanae in nomine Dei tui me discutiam malum" roughly translates to "Be cleansed of unholiness, in the name of God, I dispel thy evil!" correct me if I'm wrong.

John Dee (Faustus), the scryer, croatoan and Mephistophiles is roughly based on Goethe's and other similar literary history. The Orion constellation really does have a star named Bellatrix.

The Astrological Clock in Prague and France is real. I have used the actual symbols and symbolic relics found on each historical figure and researched some interpretations plausible for the story. (I was amazed at the number of coincidences!)

The chapter title is from Shakespeare, why? You'll have to figure this one out for yourself ;)

The Avengers, Thanos, Chitauri ©Marvel

Dylan Sinclair ©LVS

Worth (c) LVS

Cover Photo (c) Kibbitzer via DA

* * *

_Readers' Corner: Here's a section where I TRY to answer/respond to your queries/PMs/reviews. :)_

_Hi there! So... I wouldn't be surprised if you'd all go on commenting about Loki's situation right now so, yeah, please do by all means XD_

_Here are a few things I would like to discuss regarding your feedback._

_First of all, thank you for your honesty (Night) and support (yes, especially you MagicalElf and RCB) and just for dropping by. Letting the author know how you feel about her writing is vital for learning and I do appreciate you making for time for that so props for you!_

_Second, I've contemplated on bringing Bruce in the picture and my answer is...Yes. But not soon. He will be a special case. As for Coulson, he is a definite maybe since I've already considered getting Happy (you probably know him from the Iron Man movies) a cameo along with the OC that I will name after my best reviewer. So watch out for these._

_Yes. Thanos, is here. I had to bring the Chitauri back but his appearance is still consequential since I'm trying to fit the story line with Avengers 2 and Thor 2._

_If you're all wondering about Dylan's blade, to simply describe it, its the only thing that can kill the Nephilim making it a very powerful weapon to use against the lesser of her kind. Unfortunately, that's not very good for Loki._

_Now what? What the heck is gonna happen next?_

_Let's see the scryer is gone, Thanos has Dylan's blood for some sick reason we still don't know, Fury got possessed and knocked out...again, Barton got tricked...again and the others still can't find them and to top it all of, Loki is dying. What will our little angel do now? Post your guesses!_

_Watch out for Part II. entitled E...g. (Clue, the movie had the word hanging up somewhere. It's a description of Loki's character and tumblr has a pic of it). I will post a teaser some time this month along with the announcement of the next update. MAJOR FLUFF ON THE FIRST CHAPTER OF PART2!_

_I've posted something for all of you in my tumblr account :)_

_In the meantime watch the Hollow Crown and the Amazing Spiderman._

_Much love,_

_Lady-von-Strife_


	8. PART II

**"Worth"**

An Avengers Fanfiction

© Lady-von-Strife

* * *

**Part II**

* * *

Bright star, would I were steadfast as thou art—

Not in lone splendour hung aloft the night

And watching, with eternal lids apart,

Like nature's patient, sleepless Eremite,

The moving waters at their priestlike task

Of pure ablution round earth's human shores,

Or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask

Of snow upon the mountains and the moors—

No—yet still steadfast, still unchangeable,

Pillow'd upon my fair love's ripening breast,

To feel for ever its soft fall and swell,

Awake for ever in a sweet unrest,

Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,

And so live ever—or else swoon to death.-bright star

-John Keats

* * *

_It began with a light that fought to free itself from the darkness and now the tale continues with a conquest for redemption._

_There are two sides of the prophecy but only one end._

_The Fates watch and the gods of death sing their requiems in waiting._

* * *

**_Eroberung_ begins…**

* * *

Dear readers,

I am pleased to announce that after my short hiatus, I am back and 'up and writing."

What you've just read is the official transition marker for Worth (from Iridescence to Eroberung). You can read more about my discussion of this update (plus one huge spoiler) on my tumblr account tightropesandringsoffire . With that said, I thank all you readers, old and new and I do hope I can hear from you guys too. Expect an update very very soon!

Love,

Lady-von-Strife


	9. One: Eroberung Begins

**"Worth"**

An Avengers Fanfiction

© Lady-von-Strife

* * *

**Part II: EROBERUNG**

* * *

ONE: _Hide Your Fires_

* * *

LOKI

* * *

I've always wondered if the Valkyries would find some sort of indignation towards me and be willful in ferrying me towards the mellow depths of my version of Valhalla.

Should the roots of the ancient tree, Yggdrassil, pluck me from it one day and cast me into barren Hel, then so be it. I have angered the gods of Order for cycles and I always took an uncanny interest in their sentiments towards my behavior however, for quite some time, they have remained vaguely tolerant and indecisive towards my actions. _Have they thought of me as a nuisance? Or a crude form of entertainment?_

_You will live through this!_

There remains a few who would deem me with much seriousness that I lest forget that they are the same few who have placed the biggest doubts on me. If there were really celestials watching over us, then I could conclude that they sit in the same pedestal as that of the Valkyries. There is much curiosity in their eyes, I reckon but surely there was no dark humor in hers.

I could still hear her voice, pleading for me to stay in consciousness. I could still feel the pressure of her hands on my chest which kept my blood for spilling faster but I wasn't really there. Slowly, my mind began to fleet even as my eyes lifelessly darted her troubled face.

Even with Fury and Barton lay immobile from just a few feet away, I could only picture the two of us in this arms race. Death came creeping into reality as pain shot through me, forcing me to gag. Her blade was enchanted, I knew there was a reason that she yielded it. It was the only thing powerful enough to scathe her and what more to those of a lesser rank?

Crimson trickled down my mouth as I tried to speak, "Shh…don't. Let _me_ help you. Just stay awake damn it!" Her eyes trailed down to the side of my waist where the dagger of my birthright was safely sheathed. I had forgotten that I equipped myself with it for quite some time now. I never found much use for it since I've learned to use my magic and now she takes interest in it for gods know what. _Was she planning on giving me a quick and painless death?_

_No. That kind of mercy would never come from her._ She was steadfast but never crude.

Her fingers wound around its handle and began to pull it out of the dagger's protective covering. My brows weaved, "What…what….are you doing?" My vision blurred into star-like silhouettes of different sizes. I found it hard to concentrate on her expression.

"Saving your life," her free hand gripped the sharp sides of the blade and before I could protest, she cut across her palm menacingly, summoning the viscous fluid out of her body. There was a tint of silver embedded in her blood. It was the same manifestation that the vialed droplets showed. She gave me a resilient look and quickly placed her bleeding hand on my wound. As soon as it made contact on my skin, I felt a sudden shock of escaped breath and as if fleetingly, her blood that mixed with my own sent a warm sensation within me and soon enough, I began to drift into a steady sleep. I fought to keep my consciousness but whatever she had done was clearly too much for my body to handle. In the least, I was certain that the hopeful face watching over and healing me would greet me the next time I would wake.

And I was sure that I would. I wished for it to come sooner.

I longed to live. Just to see her again.

* * *

"Loki,"

I have heard a number of voices call out for me, urging me to wake from my long slumber. There were times when my body would react to such pleadings but they weren't to much avail. In my mind's eye, I am constantly reminded of my adoptive father in his Odinsleep and perhaps it may have been due to such fear that my fate would prefer the same sentence as his. Alas, the prophecy impedes such an easy escape and so, there is allowance for my consciousness to surface at the precise and opportune moment.

The moment came sooner than I had expected.

My eyes began to flutter open but all I could make out were dancing lights of the fluorescence and distorted silhouettes of furniture.

"Loki!" The voice forced my ears to ring and a hand makes it way around my arm and I jerked into a rise. I almost tear into the abrupt awakening of the lights and instinctively, I scanned my surroundings. Unfortunately, it was not the person I had wanted to see as proof of my survival who owned the voice.

"Thank the gods. The fates smile on you this day,"

My body sank back into the soft sheets of my resting bed and my brother continued to watch as I set my breathing into a steady pace, "How long was I in slumber?" there was no ill in my tone.

My brother gave me a grimace, "Two nights. Truly, some men really rise on the third day after their heroism,"

I merely blinked, "Your enthusiasm is hardly refreshing," my scarred hand makes its way towards my chest, which uncannily evoked no sort of pain even as I moved. I still felt some pressure under the bandages but here was hardly any physical manifestations for me to concern about.

My brother stood and pressed his hand on my still jammed shoulder making me wince, "The doctor has done you well. Gather energy fast, there are still matters that need attention," he said matter of factly.

I was fully and dreadfully aware and I wondered how much the others knew about the complications that I added.

I positioned to sit but was halted by Thor as I began to unbutton my tunic and trace the linings of my bandages.

"She knew you'd be curious, however, she has specifically instructed us to leave the bandages on until she returns to change them herself,"

"It's hardly anything," I raised a brow which Thor mirrors.

"It would seem that the doctor has taken special interest in you, if I do say so myself," I gave him a hard look and he in turn shook his head as he snorted out laughter, "Always so hard-headed brother. Best do as she says. I will leave you to your rest now,"

He left without waiting for my reply. Clearly, he has gotten used to my silent treatments. I already had a feeling that he was making some preposterous conclusions about my sentiments towards her. He was always the jester but I, the jested. Pity how he deemed himself the lord of all knowing charms.

I folded my collars enough to give me some space to observe at close distance for traces of my harsh stab. I recalled the horrific event that almost ended my life. I vividly remembered through physical memory how the blade went through my chest. I was sure of death through blood-loss. Were it not for luck, Mephistophiles would have staked my heart in an instant and yet he missed. I refused to acknowledge it as fate, it was all too good to be true.

My visitors grew in number as the hours passed and quite surprisingly even some of the S.H.I.E.L.D agents including Fury came to wish me a speedy recovery. I took their gesture as an incumbent and sly way of keeping me on watch. After all, I was not necessarily an ally to them yet. Nor will I ever.

Still, despite my undermined shock towards the sudden turn of events, I still lay in bewilderment regarding my survival. Yes. She has indeed kept me alive but how exactly? Was it literally her blood? Was that the reason why Thanos allied with the demon?

"I have to say, you're a pretty persistent mother," Fury kept calm the duration of visits. He would make some remarks which I found hardly sensible and easy to decipher. I didn't exactly know if he was taking it as a gesture of gratitude for acting civil towards me or mere precaution. Whatever it was, I was glad that his awkward banter soon came to a pause. The pain that lingered around my wrists stood as a distraction throughout Fury's attempt to create small talk.

"You mind if I take my shift Nick?"

Nick looked at her in coyness and shrugged as he gestured for her to enter, "Whatever you say doc," he gave me a wondering look before he left and nodded at the doctor. The weight of the gauntlets began to drift again and I wasn't quite sure if the reason I was relieved to hear her voice came from the dwellings of my scars or...something else.

The doctor cleared her throat, "How are you feeling?" she gave me a sardonic look as she approached and as much as I had wanted to fix my posture, I hadn't the energy to look proper.

I smirked, "Better, thanks to you. Though I don't exactly know how and why,"

She gives me a wry smile and I gestured for her to sit. She pulled up a stool and sat at my bedside, "You've saved my life practically the whole duration of this thing. I think it's about time I pay you back don't you think?""

I shook my head, "You are more valuable than I am,"

"Now that's not entirely true, is it?"

I ignored her statement, "What exactly happened then?"

She crossed her arms and took a breath, "Where do I even begin?"

I blinked at her at pursed my lips, "How about the part explaining _why_ I lived?"

She massaged her temple, "My blade was forged from holy fire and silver metal handpicked from the river Styx. It's like a twin to the Archangel Michael's blade he used during the great war. But with that much power replicated, it branded itself as both a curse and a blessing to Raziel. It can slay almost anything but it is also the only weapon which can kill his kind. Yielding it would mean eternal possession and responsibility,"

A blessing and a curse. Is that how she looked at herself? With much spite and longingness for freedom? I had begun to wonder why despite her hopeful exterior, she always found a way to keep her emotions in burdens to bear maketh one intolerable to mistakes,

"And Mephistophiles knew this?"

She nodded, "Every demon does. They fear it and they also lust for its power. He never meant to kill you I think. You just got in the way,"

My brows furrowed, "But, if so, then how is it that I am still here conversing with you?"

"Your affinity as an Asgardian gave you an advantage of survival but as I said, only holy magic can combat holy magic and thus,"

I cut her speech, "The blood spilt becomes the blood undone,"that's why they wanted her. He wants to renew his army.

She drew closer to me and began to unravel the bandages on my chest, slowly and carefully. Her gesture made me fluster that I was momentarily stunned by her advances. I watched as she warily took the barely bloodied tapestry making me more confused. _How could I have gashed such a huge wound if the blood I accumulated barely spilt?_

My eyes met hers momentarily but she quickly broke our stare. I continued to watch her, unblinking. Soon, I feel the cold prick of her skin against the bare flesh on my chest where I was struck and then, I realized that I had not felt any unease. I quickly peered at my chest and started tracing for any sort of gash but, there was none. I was completely healed. _It was as if nothing happened._

At that moment, I have come to grasp the idea that her blood had bounded into mine and reconstructed the pieces of my physicality. I felt more than connected to her, I felt like I didn't have heraldship over my own existence now. If not for her, I would have been left as a muddy cask waiting for the years to serve me as an extravagant feast for the worms but she has given me another chance. And I was undeserving of it.

_I_ was the cause of all of this._ I_ have practically sentenced all of us to our graves. All due to my curiosity of this one woman.

_But why was there little remorse? _

The delight in my face began to fade instantly as I closed my eyes and took inhaled "You should have left me to die,"

She winced, "What are you talking about? Quit sulking will you," she set the bandages aside, "A simple thank you is all it takes unless…"

I looked at her in self-contempt, "There is more to this than you know,"

Her mouthed tightened, "You mean those strange demons? I don't think I've ever seen their likes as well however, some of them _are_ known shapeshifts,"

_I am a shapeshift._ The fact quickly reminded me of parts of myself I chose to keep in minimal knowledge. _Does she think of me as a demon as well? A bane of her existence? _I bury else lingering thoughts of angst.

I shook my head and curled my fingers into a fist, "They're _not _demons,"

She eyed a small blinking object at the ceiling, "You have to trust me Loki. I won't hold anything against you_ if_ you tell me exactly what the hell is going on,"

"I can't. There are too many eyes and ears, I'm afraid,"

She motioned for me to make some space at the sides of my bed where she repositioned herself so that we were at level when we faced each other, "You don't have to say anything,"

"How?"

She curved her lips upward and placed her hands at the side of my cheeks as if to steady my face. My heart sped its beating and I felt myself turn warm out of surprise. Her eyes began to shift from her normal blue into an eerily beautiful shade of cyan, "Just trust me," she said.

Her eyes bore into mine, sending an unexplainable feeling of commanding my memories to relive itself in my head. We never shut our eyes but her look was intense yet unwavering. There was willfulness in my part however there was also fear. She would see through my every doubt and she might even be able to bring into surface a collection of my emotions I chose to ignore.

The doctor was the kind of being that humans should behold and what others should fear. She was may not be at par with the Fates but she may even be more powerful.

Secrets.

A double edged steel which brands the purity of man by the ability to keep them in justice.

A tool that can be used to build and a tool that can be used to destroy. _Like that of Mjolnir._

In the wrong hands, it could breed chaos- spoken or unspoken.

But I believe that secrets aren't the arsenal to harbor the kind of state one wishes, it is truth.

She now knew everything, my conversation with Mephistophiles, my unsettled debt with the Chitauri and maybe even my lingering thoughts about her and the truth about how I had watched her for far too long.

The recollection broke as soon as she removed her gaze. She withdrew her hands that rested on each side of my cheek but remained seated beside me.

She looked away. Worried and alarmed by the revelations.

I longed for the warmth of her touch to remain, still and comforting but all willfulness from her came to drift so fast.

I _was_ right. They wanted to use her as a tool for vengeance. She is the key and she is also their new life source. She is their only chance. As well as ours.

And then it all began to come screaming into my mind that the only way to end these series of catastrophes was to provide a conclusion to the loop of the unfinished prophecy. _She_ would have to be the end itself.

"The Orion arrives in two days," she spoke nonchalantly, turning her gaze away from me.

I curled my fingers into a ball and looked at her, determined, "Then we must hurry. There is still enough time for us to halt the rehabilitation of Thanos' army,"

She shook her head and fiddled her fingers into the now empty chain that wound around her neck, "Maybe, however, he's not really much to be concerned with. Mephistophiles still has my blade and he'll probably use it to kill Thanos and spill my blood on the scryer before we could get to him,"

I reflexively rested my hand on top of hers making her direct attention at me quite abruptly. I was never forward with her. I was always cautious and deliberate however I found no inclination in myself to hinder my true emotions at that moment, "He won't. I swear to you, _we_ will be the victors of this war. For so long as you stand, hope still lives,"

She exhaled and her look of her surprise transitioned into a cloud of angst, "Prophecy states of my death Loki whether or not things end in our favor," She stares at me calculatively, "I am _not_ afraid of death. I am confident that all will end well because you and the others will restore order," She has always known. She has already accepted her fate. She was ready for the sacrifice. _I wasn't. _

I scoffed, "You have broken the threads of fate many times, even if it was not for your benefit. I find no reason for you to stop now."

"You can't save me all the time Loki,"

My hand pressed on hers firmly as if to convince her of my sentiments. I found much purpose in her and I knew that I would not rest until all was said and done and so I spoke clear of my intentions, "I _can_ and I _will_," my expression found no space for doubt. I was resolute.

She interrupted my speech with an aggravated expression, "I don't have all the answers you seek. There are some secrets that even I cannot decipher."

I frowned, "I am not doing this for that,"

"You have a reputation that I have equipped myself to take caution of," She raised a brow at me, "What _are_ you doing this for?" She had every reason not to trust me. I am a trickster by reputation but I am in my own perception, lawful by nature.

I would never betray her.

The muscles in my face soften and I look at her longingly, "You already know the answer to that but now you deny it," she moved away from me and lifted her eyes from mine. She paced back and forth the room in a quiet disturbance as I waited for her reply.

Her mouth slightly gaped open as she closed her eyes as if to find an appropriate statement as a rebuttle. She responded as I had already predicted. Defensively, "You don't understand…This is a lot bigger than any of us,"

An unbecoming confidence befell my emotions as I quickly roused. I towered over her even as she instinctively took a few steps aback. She looked pained and confused and it ached to see her in that state. But she needn't utter another word for me to understand. And if I have learned anything from our quest, it was to truly live like it was our last.

I took another step towards her, closing in but a small distance between us and I, for the first time, gave her a sincere but small smile, "But I _do_ and _I_ do not fear the truth. You have given me a second chance and now I bestow unto you what is rightfully yours," I took her hand allowed her palm to rest on my chest and gave her a moment to sense the stable rhythm of my heart beating. She looked at me with hesitance, "This _life,_" I urged her to come closer, "_my_ life, is yours now,"

She narrowed her eyes at me, puzzled, "Then you have condemned yourself for giving me such privilege!" she withdrew her hand from my chest and I quickly caught it in time to stop her from turning away. My eyes bore into her now, with much pleading, "It is no condemnation to prove your worth," I spoke with much authority but without a brand of deceitful presumptions. I was not one to speak in such manner and she knew of this. She could see through me. She knew the desires buried beneath my tattered soul. Even as she tried to pull away from my grip, I saw past her surfaced expression. Dylan looked very angry and denial was filling up her eyes and soon enough the stiffness of her position began to fade.

"Loki don't-" There was a sadness in her eyes as she shifted her gaze from the floor to me. _Did she fear of deceit? Or did she fear giving me false hope?_

It didn't matter. I had to know in the least. I would never compromise her and yet I could not bear to remain in the shadows and be branded as a coward for not taking a chance. Maybe I rose from death to live for _this_ moment. Maybe I was just being selfish. But at least, I was being true to myself. There was nothing else left to lose.

I cupped her chin gently and made her face me, "Tell me that I'm lying," she slowly shifted her gaze towards my eyes. She blinked as a trail of crystallizing liquid trickled down her face. They were not tears. The trail froze into sharp and thin icicles. The fluid caused her pain as it fell to the sides of her face. _Was this her curse? The inability to properly portray the humble weakness and distresses of her own soul?_

I wiped the sides of her face making her quiver and before she could utter anything else, I let my temple rest on hers and slowly drew her closer to me until I could hear her breathing. She closed her eyes and squeezed my other hand, "Don't let me regret this," she said in a low tone.

I smiled at her and caressed her cheeks, "Never,"

And then the impossible happened.

My lips crashed into hers, gently yet fervently. It was a long and intimate gesture that had made me wish for the morrow to never arrive. She didn't hold back and instead wound her arms around my neck as I laced my own into her bodice to keep her from shaking. Despite being a powerful being that she was, she still felt vulnerable and unyielding and maybe that was what drew me to her. _Her humanity._

She tasted sweet. Like nectar from the fruit of Asgardian greenlands in Spring. She was the complete opposite of me. I was born out of frost and she was molded from pure, burning desire. _  
_

And that was when I knew that I would not go in pursuit of pride, honor or freedom. I would go in pursuit of hope.

So this is what _it_ felt like...I thought.

I was completely consumed only by thoughts of her. And there was no way that I would allow any prophetic piece nor god of death to smite her away from me.

It was my turn to be in selfless conquest.

* * *

**AN:** So…how was that for an opener eh? It's got the fluff as requested and it was pretty easy on the eyes. I do hope that I made you guys happy. I decided to post a chapter without having a hassled feel about the turn of events. I mean, I guess I should give Loki a break, since he almost died and all. But anyway, expect things to get heavier and juicer as the story progresses. It's sorta…rated in the appropriate age group after all. Haha! Thanks for reading guys and I do hope you take the time to give me some thoughts about the chapter (all sorts of reviews/PMs are welcome. Penny for my hard work and your comments yes?). You are all awesome!

Took some photos from my handy-dandy notebook to post as tidbits of stuff and spoilers for my tumblr (tightropesandringsoffire). I don't really know why I'm doing it but I guess, it motivates me more to finish the story. SRSLY. Did you check out the post regarding the part 2 title yet? (Someone from the list of Avengerswewannaseeinthisfic gets a sorta-kinda cameo in the next chapter. Watch out!

I just found out that Tom H. did a recording of John Keats' Bright Star and I must say…that is one AWESOME coincidence! I knew that he did recordings along with Helena BC, I have heard a lot but it's just recently that I heard it so imagine my surprise! Also, not to break the assumption of me using "**Stars, hide your fires,****Let not light see my black and deep desires**"- William Shakespeare, _Macbeth_; Act I, Sc. Iv

Another Shakespeare reference on the count of Hollow Crown, which is another pleasant coincidence (just a little, since TH did Henry V right?) but I was always an avid Shakespeare lover since birth. Don't get me wrong, I have all the Avengers feels!

Also, my heart goes out to the victims of the Aurora shooting. The Dark Knight Rises and cinema in general remains as a medium of powerful entertainment meant for everyone to enjoy and the instigator of crimes like these have no right to taint the innocence of the industry's influence. Please stay safe and everyone and let's all pray for those who were affected by the said event (now, as well as the victims of the storm in my country). Christian Bale visited the victims which was really touching and inspiring and he really put into a light of hope Nick Fury's statement when he said, "I still believe in super heroes." Awesome!

-**LVS**

* * *

Disclaimers:

All Angelic, prophetic and holy reference is purely fiction. I have created my own interpretation of its history and is by no means a way of disrespect or blasphemy against any (church particularly the Christian). I have strong beliefs which lay separate from my world of fictional writing. Mephistophiles and John Dee are based on historical figures (mythical and real) as I have read in some of my researches.

Eroberung means conquest.

Dylan Sinclair ©LVS (as well as Mephistophiles and John Dee renditions in this story)

The Avengers, Thanos, Chitauri ©Marvel

Worth (c) LVS

Cover Photo (c) Kibbitzer via DA


	10. Eroberung: Lacrimae Rerum

**"Worth"**

An Avengers Fanfiction

© Lady-von-Strife

* * *

**Part II: EROBERUNG**

* * *

TWO: _Lacrimae Rerum_

* * *

"The burden man has to bear, ever present frailty and suffering, is what would define the essence of human experience."- Virgil, Aenid

* * *

**LOKI**

* * *

There comes a time where regret becomes futile. A very human aspect yet powerful enough to penetrate through the barriers of Celestials and destiny lingers eternally in pursuit of satisfaction.

"No. No one can know about this. It will ruin all chances of our success," There is no tinge of hesitation in my tone. I eye her firmly as if to convince her of no other options. To my dismay, she remains dissuade. She was determined to make me yield to her wishes.

She sighs.

The moment we had was broken. It had only been more than hour since my confession and time was clearly not in our favor. She already knew too much and I still had much to learn. The air grew heavier as minutes passed and though I still felt a strong reciprocal emotion to my advances earlier on, I was fully aware that it all happened too soon and too out of place.

Dylan's gaze does not break from mine, "Thanos plays a heavy part in all of this. If he learns what my blood can do, it will only give Mephistophiles a greater advantage. We need help. You have to tell your brother,"

I shake my head, "Thor will only think of me in more distrust. It will be better for me to settle things with Thanos while you and the others take care of Mephistophiles,"

She takes a step closer. Her expression commands my attention. It was going to be difficult to persuade her, "Listen to me Loki, the blood that dripped into the scryer came from your hands and by memory, it recalls significant places you have inhabited thus opening a realm into Thanos' world and maybe even Asgard," Thoughts of my mother flash before my eyes and I fear the situation of my former home knowing that it would not hold as strongly without its princes to protect them, "Mephistophiles just plans on using him as a diversion. He just wants you out of the way. He would do anything and everything to get rid of you,"

My voice remains steady, "And why is that?"

Her hand fiddles on the gold chain around her neck which reminded me that I've yet to return her pendant. She seems to hold special value to it. Her brows weave, "He sees you as a threat and with good reason. I think I know what your gauntlets are really for,"

I instinctively place attention on my wrists and trace the enochian writings on my gauntlets. _Was this part of my punishment uncoincidental? _I respond, still eyeing the markings, "I'm listening, go on,"

She swiftly makes her way to my side and winds her fingers around my wrists. Upon touching the metal, the inscriptions slowly started glowing as did her eyes. The white and blue clashing like a sea of stars and clouds reflected in her eyes made me tinge. She released her grip and the wounds I garnered from the last bout disappeared. She blinked, "Your gauntlets clearly came from something other than Asgardian steel. It's clearly from a holy source and just like my blade, it works on blood magic. That's the reason it gives you pain. It draws life from its host in order for it to continue to exist,"

"And how does this relate to Mephistophiles and Thanos?"

She points at the enochian inscriptions pressing on my skin, "Your gauntlets function as a chain or a shackle but not to control _you_. It serves a deeper purpose when combined with the scryer. It's a lock,"

I raise both my arms at chest level to assess the similar writings at each side to affirm her statement, "Then, if we can find a way to get a hold of the scryer then we can lock the gates connecting Midgard and his realm," _and of Asgard's. _She reads my thoughts like scanning through written script.

She nods.

Without hesitation, I steer to her side and come up to her face to face. I look at her intently and for a second I sensed her jolt into alarm, "I can do it. I know the workings of Thanos' mind; all we have to do is find the demon,"

Dylan shakes her head and breaks our stare, "There is no assurance that Mephistophiles hasn't already told Thanos about my blood. Should he decide to drop my blood into the scryer…" her voice trails away and she turns as if I had spoken something out of spite.

I move myself closer to her. She still has her back at me and even if I am just inches away from her neck, I was cautious enough to keep a comfortable distance. "What? What happens?" I did not place any tone of demand as I asked. It was not out of curiosity either. Merely innocent yearning for answers.

Without proper assessment, my hand traces the side of her arm. To my surprise, she twines her hand on mine and turns to face me, "We have to tell Thor, Loki," there it is again. Her look of sadness. The less she told me, the more I felt afraid. The thing is, I did not know even the reason why.

"Dylan," I lower my head to catch her glance. She did not wish to look at me. I place both hands on her shoulders now, "_What_ happens when he drops your blood into the scryer?"

Her hand curls up into a fist, "Then it's all up to you now," she takes a deep breath and I feel tension slowly building up. I needed answers now.

"Tell me!" I shook her a little and her eyes widen, "Whoever drops my blood into the scryer, controls me," all train of thought halts.

My forehead creased and I stumble for words, "Controls you? Wh-what are you saying!"

Before I could mutter anything else, she gave me an intense look and placed her hand on my chest and as if a concentrated amount of spectral magic lay in her fingertips, she dug her fingers into the side of my heart and my Jotunheim descent surfaced.

I didn't dare to look at myself for more than a minute and I instantly lifted her touch from my chest, " N-no, don't…this isn't how I want you to see me!" There was no change in her expression. She wasn't even bothered by my horrified look.

She drew towards me and touched my cheek. Her gesture made me flinch, "Just as you have a part of yourself you wish to hide, so do I but mine is a much more complex fete. The Nephilim are a very obedient and ruthless kind and once bound, we are sworn to obey. So, do not tell me that I do not understand you,"

I frowned, "Why have you been cursed with such fate?" I quiver at the thought of her lifelong burden.

Dylan sighed, "It's because the fate due me has long past and living in borrowed time displeased quite a few personas. It's the price my bloodline has paid for mankind's protection,"

There was only sincerity and selflessness in her demeanor. It was as if whatever fate befell her, she had embraced wholeheartedly. She was always so strong…Yet, she had yielded even before the battle had begun. This was unacceptable, "The oath made by your father shouldn't be yours to fulfill. You are merely a victim of this cruelty!"

She cut my propositions to my surprise, "It's not something I could just dispel. And even if I had a choice, my actions wouldn't have been much different,"

For a moment there was only silence. Another memory building made from shards of lasting strife and injustice. She was too selfless. Too kind for her own good. Midgard needed her_. I_ needed her. But I knew that it just couldn't be…that simple.

"There is much I do not understand about you and your kind but know this, whatever you think is best to be done, I will stand by it," I have lied. I have never thought crafting words of false promises would have been so difficult. I felt guilt and resentment towards myself for I could never lie to her. And I had a feeling I would be breaking the promise even before I confront it.

She smiles a little, "You'll understand, soon," she quips and I knew instantly that I would _not_ understand. I did not wish for it, "But for now, we have to tell your brother,"

I ruffle my hair in defeat and cocked a brow, "So it seems. Answer me this then,"

"What is it?"

I spoke frankly, swallowing rapidly the bitterness of my words, "Why do I have inkling that our victory is double edged?"

She looks at me, wide-eyed and mute. There was no need for her to confirm my theory. I was right. I had denied the truth that was set before my eyes since the beginning but I needed to hear it from her myself.

For in all honesty, I still hope for a different response.

* * *

"Well, it's about time the both of you showed," Stark greeted us with a speculative grin with which the doctor flinched as a response. The rest of the Avengers did not greet us with much enthusiasm. We had lost precious time and now that the scryer was gone along with her blade, the only leverage we had was John Dee. And even his presence was hardly helpful.

Thor patted my back as if to give regard to my recovery and I instantly am reminded of my task to narrate his part as an envoy. I nodded in affirmation and stood at his side, silent.

Fury had no room for smiles that day. He was completely and utterly distressed about our situation, "Doc," her attention quickly transferred to him, "What's happening? I am completely at a loss here,"

Hawkeye jumped from the upper deck of the control hangar and signaled Romanov to call on Maria, "Ain't much different from our standpoint,"

The doctor looked at Barton and Fury, "I'm afraid there's been a change of plans director. Agent Hill, the Captain please,"

Maria Hill nodded at the doctor and spoke on the prompter to summon the common the Captain. She had at least planned ahead during my confinement and though I already had a feeling that what she had in mind would be unwelcomed, I believe that it was the best option for us.

Romanov propped up her seat upon hearing the hangar shutter open. The rest of us anticipated our visitors. At quick alarm, Barton and Romanov stood at the director's side and secured the guns locked on their belts. My brother, I and the doctor only remained at ease at the sight of the Captain escorting John Dee to our meeting.

"At ease everyone," The captain gestured for the others to put down their weapons. He pointed to the special cuffs locked on Dee's wrist and remained at his side. John Dee remained calm but very much enthused at our sight.

Fury frowned, "Doc?"

The doctor started, "Dee's going to make things a lot clearer for all of us. Watch carefully," The doctor motioned for the Captain to move a little further away from Dee.

Dee grinned wickedly, "So it has all come to this eh Nephilim? Your doubts lead you to break laws of your own yes?"

She looked at him intensely and with a fast movement, she gripped his throat, "You didn't give me much choice!" As soon as fingers wound around his neck tightly, her eyes turned into the eerie white-blue light. Her body glowed in clear mist and I was sure I saw enochian writings on her skin. Her transformation caused a stir that we felt the force of it surround us. John Dee's eyes turned wide and eclipsed into glassy irises. Soon we found ourselves enclosed in a mirror-like sphere. Images from what I believe came from Dee's thoughts and memories came to surface.

The scene showed John Dee and Mephistophiles in some sort of laboratory in mid-conversation.

"The prophecy_ will_ come true…one of the Nephilim lives!" John Dee held up pieces of papyrus script with enochian glyphs engraved on them. So it was true about his obsession.

Mephistophiles raised his brow, "Congratulations doctor. Your discovery will change the face of the earth," he gave the scientist a wide grin.

The scene shifts into a study where a broken pendulum is scattered on the floor and a helpless John Dee is seen crawling from a beating from the grey demon. Dee cries out, "We had a deal you bastard! I sold my soul to find the truth and you tricked me! You used me!"

"Technically speaking, I kept my part of the bargain. All I needed to do was find an occultist who shared the same perspective as me and now that I gave you what you asked, I am no longer indebted to you. I should thank you actually,"

"I knew I should never have trusted you fully!"

"And you're right, you shouldn't have! But, your soul is mine now and I'm here to claim it. Consider the Nephilim's location as my bonus!"

"NO!" John Dee began narrating a strange limbic of phrases which made Mephistophiles weak. He was binding himself to the grey demon, "Now we can't escape each other!"

Another shift and this time John Dee is revealed as a young man.

Mephistophiles begins, "The time of compromise is past mortal. I will have my freedom,"

"And how will that ever happen? The prophecy will never turn to your advantage unless you know how to manipulate the scryer,"

Mephistophiles cackles, "I have you for that. The Nephilim will open the gates and assure us of our freedom,"

There is a way for us to break this spell however; I would require a small token of my own _if_ I help you."

"Help you? You owe this to me you bastard!"

"You almost killed me demon, so I guess we see eye to eye now,"

"So it would seem. Now tell me, what needs to be done for us to enter Paradise?"

"We have the gateway; all that we need now is the key and a diversion."

There was a loud thud when the doctor released John Dee who fell to his knees, seemingly drained from all energy as pyres of smoke lifted from his body. Yet, he was laughing, "We're winning Nephilim,"

The doctor didn't turn to face us, "Then _why_ are you still _here_?"

His eyes narrowed and his mouthed grew wider, "You think_ that_ monster is the diversion?"

_Did he speak of Thanos? _

I shot the doctor a look but quickly turned to face my brother who sensed my unease.

John Dee began to stand, "You are wrong Nephilim, completely and utterly wrong,"

Even if Thanos was only indirectly involved, he still had possession of her blood and there was no other choice but to take claim of what was rightfully ours.

I spoke, "Thor, I need a moment,"

* * *

Regret. I feel nothing but regret.

"What have you done brother?" There was only disappointment and anger in his eyes. The doctor had done much for us, especially for me and how have I repaid her? With more problems.

I tried to remain composed. It was an inevitability that among others, I would have to be the first one on alert, "Regrettably… I have caused much burden however, with your help; we could settle at least...half of our problems,"

Thor gripped my collar. I gave no such effort to halt him, "And what of the other half?! Why do you always treat these things like a game? Have you not learned anything?!" _Have I? Was playing with fire merely a personal habit of mine? _No proper response came from me. I merely waited for him to calm.

His fingers unrolled on my tunic and he exhaled hard, "_Why_ is it integral for me to be your envoy? What have you to fear from Thanos?"

"I do not fear him. What I do fear is his capability to call upon something worse than demons. And,"

His brows weave together and I turn from him, "And?"

"I cannot leave her,"

My brother places a hand on my shoulder, "You know she is better than all of us. She can take care of herself—"

"No. I can't…" I had no intention to yield.

He grips me tighter this time and forces me to face him. This enrages him. _Did he not sense in his putrid mind the truth that was so obvious but I dared not to speak of?_

"Why? Why can't you leave her?! This is _your_ doing, _your_ responsibility!"

I grit my teeth and feel my body temperature rise, "YOU _KNOW_ WHY!"

He sighs at the sight of me, panting and pained. He understands what I have failed to understood during his time with that mortal.

He begins to nod slowly, "Then, so be it."

* * *

Things that would come as a surprise were becoming less and less. The doctor's narrative about the prophecy gave clarity to what was happening. It was difficult to believe but easier to understand and it was only the beginning of the end.

Romanov's glare was impossible to hide, "So what you're saying is…the prophecy is talking about,"

The doctor responded without restraint, "The reaping. The start of the apocalypse, yes." In her peripheral, she could see Barton tense up as he looked in affirmation at the captain. It was only the director who was focused on their epiphany.

Fury unfolded his arms and gave a look of disdain to each of the Avengers, "And you could in fact be our end _and _our only hope?"

"Practically speaking,"

Fury's voice raised a few octaves, "But why? How?"

The doctor let out a breath, "The return of the Nephilim is one of many keys to open the gates between worlds. No one from our bloodline is even supposed to be alive. This is a price to pay for a second life. The Nephilim are capable of many things and if you've noticed, Loki is a living testament of me, breaking the norms of life,"

Upon hearing Loki's name, Stark jumped off his seat and began pacing across the foyer. He had one hand massaging his chin and the other tucked behind his back, "Soooooo this whole Orion thing, is part of the prophecy right?"

"Yes,"

Stark nods, "And the scryer? Whoever drops your blood into the thing controls you?" he steps closer to the doctor.

"Yes," Dylan's face tightens.

"Okaaay…So Mephisto-whoever plans on buying his freedom by letting all Hath-nos loose and get you to practically kill whatever is in his way right?"

She shrugs, "…Yes,"

Stark's hands grazes over his metal core, "Then what about the other creepy crawly?"

The others looked at the billionaire Avenger with much confusion. The doctor however instantly knew who he was pertaining to. She answers him directly, "That matter belongs to the Asgardians, however, Loki," She pauses to edit, "h-he, plays a vital part in all of this,"

The Captain finally stands and steps in between the three, "What part does he play exactly?"

Dylan gives Steve Rogers a calm but calculating look, "The scryer is the gateway, the map towards the Netherworlds, I am the key and Loki, well he's,"

"The lock," Fury intrudes and each of them gathered are taken aback. It was difficult to perceive a former foe to become a safety blanket.

"Yes," she quips, all too easily.

The Captain moves further and with a more determined look, approaches the doctor, "So you're saying that the gates are _bound_ to open? _That_'s why Loki's here?" for the first time in all that has happened, Steve Rogers was caught in distraught.

The doctor frowns, "What I am saying_ is_, should all else fall apart, you still have a chance as long as _he's_ here. His gauntlets serve that purpose and since it is bound to him, it is his duty to fulfill its purpose,"

Barton finally speaks. His control for his temper was at capacity, "But, we can't even trust him completely! That temptation of power, once he has it in his hands…who is to say that he won't betray _us_? He won't betray _you_?"

"No one can." She cuts him mid-sentence. There was authority in her tone but no ill will. The truth had cut through them like a blunt knife but the bleeding had to continue, "_But_ it's better to know that we still have hope to cling on _to_,"

"There must be another way!" Nastasha pleads and for a moment everyone is caught in a small banter. Hill remained silent and contemplative until everything made sense to her as she looked at the doctor. She saw through the half-angel, she knew all along.

"There is…" Maria whispered, "Doctor Sinclair? May I have a word with you?" Fury shot the agent an aggravated look.

"This isn't exactly a nice time to side bar Hill!"

The doctor approached her, "Of course." She knew instantly that Maria's intuitions were strong. She didn't need to read her thoughts for that.

This made Fury irritated, "Doc!"

The doctor collected her emotions, momentarily closed her eyes and began instructing them as if no important discussion was made, "Mobilize everyone, we need to get to Russia."

"Russia?"

"I told you before Cap, the Land of Darkness is where it all happens. We have a day to put stop to all of this. Thor will take care of the vial while the rest of us get the scryer back from Mephistophiles."

Fury gave her a smug look, "And you?"

The doctor blinked at him and turned, "I, prepare to face my fate…. Let's go Maria."

* * *

There was only a few minutes of silence that had occupied the space between the S.H.I.E.L.D agent and the doctor. She was leading the half-angel into a part of the moving base she had not known. The doctor chose to remain silent and just follow.

"You are very noble; I just wanted you to know that," Hill began.

Dylan's brows furrowed, "Thank you agent Hill, but, what is it _really_ that you want to talk about?

Hill's lips curved, "I've been with S.H.I.E.L.D long enough to understand the value of a good sacrifice. In this industry, it is almost inevitable however, allow me to be blunt." Maria came into a halt as soon as they had reached a secured door. She turned to the doctor and looked at her pleadingly, "You _cannot_ just throw your life away," her words struck the doctor without much defense. There was sorrow in the doctor's eyes and fear in the agent's.

She shook her head, "I'm not throwing my life away. I'm using what's left of it to _save_ all of yours. Don't you think that that's sensible?" there was no conceit, merely exactness.

Maria winced, "That's the thing, and it's not that easy. You tell us that it _has_ to happen and it _will _happen but," she bites on her lip and slowly the silent agent begins to feel emotional. Her voice quivers, "I-I don't believe that. It's like…you've given up."

The doctor looks away, "I'm living on borrowed time and the longer I stay here, the more people get hurt," She lets out a slow and hard breath and purses her lips, "I'm getting tired of losing people agent Hill."

Maria's jaw clenched and her face hardened, "_You'v_e saved more lives with your presence here than when you were underground. _You_ are a valuable person and _you _shouldn't lose your will to fight. An honorable death shouldn't be a primary motivator!"

"What do you mean?"

Hill wipes the wetness at the side of her face and inputs numbers on the secure door which quickly slid open. She steps forward, "Follow me doctor. Maybe, when you see, you'll understand…"

The electronic door closes and the doctor is greeted by a small but neat room filled with familiar medical equipment and two nurses who are quickly dismissed by Hill.

"Maria, what is all of this?"

She motions for the doctor to come closer, "The Avengers were always an uncanny alliance but what really drove them to pursue Loki was the sacrifice of an ordinary but brave man. You have to admit, without the team now; you would be handling the prophecy in much more complex state. "

"What are you trying to say Hill?"

Maria Hill moves the curtains that hid the identity of the patient and reveals a pale but peaceful looking man on life support, "Dr. Sinclair, I'd like you to meet one of our agents, Phil Coulson,"

The doctor was shocked at the reality contrary to the stories she has been told by her new found allies, "H-he's alive…"

Maria places her hand on top of the sleeping agent, "Barely. It was a miracle that they were able to revive him however, as you can see, this is the best that we could do."

"Why did you keep this from them?"

Hill shrugged, "It's what had to be done and we didn't even know how long we could hope for him to last. He doesn't have much family. Frankly speaking, he only has us to depend on. If it weren't for him, the Avengers wouldn't have been formed at all."

Dylan observed the agent more closely, "He's been there for three years?"

"Yes. But, _you _can change that doctor. You can change all of our lives and we are here to help. Phil Coulson may not have stood a chance against the dynamic forces of the universe but _you_ do. And you _have_ to fight for that."

The doctor's stare could not leave Phil Coulson's vegetative state, "I could wake him, right here, right now if you ask me to…"

"I know and, that would mean the world to me. However, I can't ask you just yet."

Her attention shifts from Coulson to Hill, "And why is that? This may be your only chance to."

Maria Hill gives her a small smile, "I just don't believe that doctor. He's a fighter. He'll always be willing to wait for so long as we allow ourselves to hope. And once everything turns to normal, then shall we decide what will be the best option is for him."

The doctor gives Phil Coulson a look of pity and hesitance, "You are asking for too much Maria."

Maria scoffs, "On the contrary, I am not asking you anything. I am giving you an opportunity. He will be something to look forward to once your return. Do you understand what I'm saying doc?"

"Some impossible things remain impossible even when you think around it."

Maria touches the cheek of Coulson and for a moment, she thought she saw him quiver at her gesture, "Not if it's something that you're sure of."

Dylan Sinclair sighed, "How long have you known about what happens to me. The prophecy, I mean?"

Agent Hill crosses her arms gives the doctor a look of discomfort,

"Angels are all bound to go back to heaven once they've done their ordeal."

* * *

There was so much to do in so little time and so the fiends in another realm came to their own version of a conference.

Mephistophiles had barely regenerated but thanks to his new found ally, he had the privilege of remaining out of bounds as long as he remained in outer space, "You were right, they really believe that you're going to use the Nephilim's blood to raise the dead,"

"Fools! They only wish to believe the things they think they can predict. Her blood serves an even more glorious purpose than that. I have a deeper rooting than vengeance," there was only rootful vengeance and lust for power in the Chitauri lord's eyes and this gave the grey demon more enthusiasm in his ploys.

"Oh? Pray tell,"

Thanos' sharp teeth dangled at the sides of his mouth as he spoke, "The alliance may think that they can use number against me but who better to defend Thanos than I, himself? They are mere pawns to make me ruler of all realms,"

Mephistophiles continued to muse the plumb giant, "And what are you planning to do? Ingest her blood?"

Thanos eyed the demon with much interest, "Of course that is what _you _would do if you stand where I stood, yes? But, no. There is a limit to the grant of immortality through Nephilim blood and my kind may not even be able to withhold the power of however, such craftsmanship of genetic material should not be out to waste. I can synthesize it as a chrism for my gauntlets but then that would be too easy,"

Inside his mind, the gray demon laughed at his revelations, "What is this thing of such complexity that you wish to accomplish then?" he raised his brow at Thanos which he rewarded with a thieving expression.

"I wish to conquer death," he said blatantly.

Mephistophiles grinned, "Don't we all?"

Thanos face fell and his voice embedded itself with spite, "This is no mere joke demon. I speak of the entity herself. Lady Death is not an easy audience and by history, the Nephilim has had her fair share of cheating her way out of her end,"

The grey demon felt an intense alarm upon hearing Lady Death's part of the whole scenario. Should he be hasty with his speech, he would lose everything, "So the prophecy is tied to her eh? It displeases the lady of all ends that the Nephilim still lives," his mouth curves upward, "I believe we all have conjured into an even better settlement don't you think?"

Thanos boasts in harsh laughter, "So it would seem. Do as you wish with her blood but I need her alive. If I deliver her lifeless, then Death will not hear my plea."

Mephistophiles takes a few steps forward and tucks both hands in his back with a speculative expression, "And…what is this fascination you have with Lady Death? I believe that she would prefer to have a loyal and powerful subject in her midst. You have nothing to fear."

"I do not but she does. The Nephilim are a strange lineage and twisting the threads of fate brings discomfort to the ancients. If I am able to please her, I would be ruler of all."

The grey demon laughs inside, "Of course, to do that, you would need to learn the mechanism of the scryer. If you allow me to take control of her, I swear to you that once the ordeal is done, I will have her jump into the arms of death herself."

"You are wise to keep knowledge of the scryer to yourself and perhaps there is no point of using brute force to have you do things at my bidding, so, what is your price?"

Mephistophiles raises his chin, "Your old friend, the son of Laufey. I want him out of my way,"

Thanos laughs again, "That goes without saying for he owes me a debt but why does he stand as an obstacle to you?"

"Should he interfere with our plans, he would certainly cause our fall. Though the Nephilim faces imminent death, if he learns the true nature of his presence in the prophecy, we both will fall. If the gate the Nephilim's blood opens turn to a close, the odds will turn against us as well."

"Where does this gate lead to that you are most desperate to trek upon?"

Mephistophiles snarls, "A place that I am sure, _you_ will never enter.

* * *

**AN: Yes I know, I can hear virtual screaming and whining but here it is anyway! A very long overdue update. So, I broke my ankle, experienced a lot of typhoons (flooding and food shortage), got a second degree burn on top of that it's our finals week at University aaannnddd Med applications are up so... MERCY! Hahaha. Just found time now to post, so expect some errors. What do you guys think about this heavy chapter? Scrapped this for about 5 times and kept on rewriting on the count of, I really want things to make sense but not completely yet :) Tell me what you think :) P.S Can you tell me the reason WHY Loki "can't leave her?" **

**Finally decided to put someone in comeback mode. I really believe that Coulson lives and so yeah, he deserves a cameo but then again, where is Banner? Lot of questions are still popping up but on the bright side, Marvel Studios is filming Thor 2! Whooooooooo! **

**Thanks for reading! **

**-LVS out of sleep**

* * *

Disclaimers:

All Angelic, prophetic and holy reference is purely fiction. I have created my own interpretation of its history and is by no means a way of disrespect or blasphemy against any (church particularly the Christian). I have strong beliefs which lay separate from my world of fictional writing. Mephistophiles and John Dee are based on historical figures (mythical and real) as I have read in some of my researches.

Eroberung means conquest. Lacrimae Rerum is taken from Virgil's Aenid, roughly translated as Tears of Things.

Dylan Sinclair ©LVS (as well as Mephistophiles and John Dee renditions in this story)

The Avengers, Thanos, Chitauri ©Marvel

Worth (c) LVS

Cover Photo (c) Kibbitzer via DA


	11. Eroberung: Beginning of the End

**"Worth"**

An Avengers Fanfiction

© Lady-von-Strife

* * *

**Part II: EROBERUNG**

* * *

THREE: _The Beginning of the End  
_

* * *

**LOKI**

* * *

There is much preparation and so little time.

I never tire of denying the cruel fate of her and I.

Even if we do succeed, there would be no certain future for us.

But all that is to happen is what has to _be_.

We have been traveling for countless hours now to the Land of Darkness and I had spent every minute thinking of a better ploy that did not involve sacrifice. I was far too clever for the shadowed truth behind Dylan's plan. She had prepared for everything the minute she knew about the attacks and that was when I made the mistake of falling for her mystique. She knew me even before we met. No truth could ever hide from her.

And what I feared most was _that_ kind of veracity.

The veracity that was both haunting and comforting at the same time.

My complement.

"How do you know that when the time comes, I'll be able to do it?" No person could ever paint my disbelief for her request and yet, there was nothing but calm in her eyes.

She places herself in front of me now, "I know because I feel it. _I_ have faith in _you_," she paused at no word.

_Inevitability_. I thought. It was the best word to describe our venture.

I am halfheartedly sure that she was aware that as she spoke, I was slowly shattered into pieces. The overwhelming but necessary task she handed to me cannot be ignored that I began to lose composure, "You are asking too much from me. I though you and I…" I looked at her watery eyes and stopped pacing. She was turning pale and slightly quivering. I turned my back and inhaled, "…were my advances unwelcome? Have I disgraced you?" I asked sternly. I heard her stifle and sigh,

" No, no, Loki," she spoke my name with such emotion that I couldn't help but turn my head sideways to see her at my peripheral, "It's not like that. I'm sorry but, it's just what has to happen. I never intended to hurt you," She was close to my back now enough that I could feel her breath creep down my neck this lightened my mood, "If there was another way, I'd risk it. Please, just promise me you'll do the right thing," she squeezed the side of arm which I caught and held as I turned.

We were facing each other now but I dared not to look into the maelstrom of her eyes. There was nothing else to feel but sadness, "You are trusting the wrong person with this…"

She placed both of her hands at the side of my face. I closed my eyes and allowed myself to feel her warmth. I was wrong. I always believed that she was vulnerable around me but all along it was I who felt powerless in her midst, "Loki, please…"

I took her hands and laced my fingers on hers and directed them down my chest as I looked intently at her, "Until the moment comes for me to face a fate with no more choices, I shall hold on to your life,"

She tightened her hold on me. I felt her turn cold, "Say it then. If you really care for me, then, swear to me you will do whatever is necessary bring everything back to order,"

I blinked, recounting the first time that I showed her affection. Recounting the little time that it required for me to see the truth behind my search. Understanding that the nature of our encounter was but temporary. And then I drew courage from them, "I swear to you that we will end as victors of this war,"

Dylan smiled now, sweetly, painfully, "Thank you…" She said.

I quickly drew her towards me and wound my arms around her. It was a foolish and rash thing to do but I deserved it. But I knew in my heart that there was still just so little time, "There is nothing to thank me for, yet,"

* * *

There was nothing but a vast, treeless land in an uncharted part of Russia where the Ancients would call a Rune base. All round us were stone walls and broken mirrors with Enochian inscriptions. This had been where the Nephilim were said to meet during the olden times. This was the place where the angel Metatron last made contact with them. It was called the place of the gates and with good reason.

It was believed to be the gateway of the Nephilim in between worlds. The home of the scryer. The place where we would face Mephistophiles.

"Tell me again," Fury said, looking from one Avenger to the next.

"The Portals open at Dawn," the doctor began, "Once the mirrors emit a silver and black spectrum, Mephistophiles will enter the Earth along with some of Thanos' men. As he enters, Steve will enter the portal which will take him to Thanos directly to obtain the vial and the scryer, if he has any of them. Tony, Natasha and Barton will keep the portals clear as you and the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D get the civilians to a safehaven,"

"And you and Loki?"

The doctor looked at the bound Dee and then I, "I'll keep Dee in check while Loki retrieves my blade. I can't afford to have too much contact with any of you until we secure my blood. "

Barton propped his bow and pointed towards Thor, "And the big guy?"

Thor grinned, "I go bring you the party as you term it,"

Natasha eyed Thor and Loki and winced, "Wait, he's not staying with us?"

I interceded, "Thor will be traveling to another realm of Asgard to retrieve something that will assure our safety,"

Dylan nodded, "And everything else depends on how we get to that point,"

The Captain looked briskly at the dark sky and pointed towards the constellation, "I can see the Orion. But no demons… Not a very punctual race eh doc?"

The doctor examined the stars as well and then her surroundings, the delay was too coincidental, "Something's not right," she turned to Dee who grinned devilishly at her.

"You fools! It has already begun!"

* * *

**3POV**

Thor was never tolerant of schemes, his separate mission pledged him to follow Loki's every instruction. He had been too understanding of his brother in the past and every single time he had trusted him, chaos drew near. If it wasn't for the lack of choices, he would've stood alongside his friends to fight to the death and yet who would have known that he of all people would have to travel to the abyss of Hela's domain.

As soon as the portals opened, Thor threw himself to enter the black door and thought of nothing but the dark runes of Hel. The chariots that welcomed him were made out of basilisk fangs and torn silk in heatless flames. There was no struggle, just an eerie comfort of Hela's welcoming.

Loki had told Thor that Mephistophiles from his name was a descendant of the other Lord of Asgardian darkness, Mephisto. The angel that had been brought to Mephistophiles was torn to pieces in the Nephilim's netherworld and brought back with Mephisto's powers. And if anyone knew Hela's hatred for the other reaper-lord, then, they would know that she would stop at nothing to earn his displeasure.

Thanos was in heavy admiration of Hela but she in turn had her eye on the half-mortal, half-angel, who escaped death all her life. How Asgard played to such role in the travesties of the mortal's Heaven and Hell, was overwhelming for Thor to grasp. He was their King-to-be and if he knew better than to allow any impediments to his realm's peace.

The only price to pay _was_ the doctor's safety. Thor knew of this. Loki knew of this.

And even the last of the Nephilim was aware.

The chariot brought Thor to Hela's throne room where she sat, patiently and alluringly in her black cut dress and eerie red eyes, anticipating the God of Thunder's arrival. She tapped her fingers on her throne and gave the handsome god a crooked smile, "Welcome, Odinson,"

Thor out of respect bowed at the Queen of death, "Hela, I wish to make a proposal,"

Hela stood and transported herself to his side, "Not necessary. I know very well why you've come," some of her subjects and loyal guards drew near them. Thor clutched Mjolnir but remained calm and focused on the dark queen.

"Then what is your answer?"

Hela circled around Thor and smiled, "That depends,"

Thor's brows weaved together, "It is not just Mephistophiles who aims to distort your reaping, there is Thanos who longs to imprison you and use you!"

Hela raised a finger, "Ah, but I have heard either wise. Thanos longs to make me his goddess and as for the fallen one? I care not of what foolishness my rival has implanted into his head!"

Thor took a stance and raised Mjolnir as screeches surrounded him, "Then I have lost cause here,"

Hela laughed, "I am not finished Asgardian, for you are right. My people are becoming less and less valuable. Should I get the Nephilim to side with me, I would have control over fallen souls as well. So allow me to give _you_ a proposal," She stopped movement and ascended into her throne, "I shall provide you with the assistance that you seek but in turn, if you turn victorious, you will grant me the audience with the Nephilim before the portals close,"

"And if we fail?"

"Then Thanos would have control over not only me but the Nephilim and then _I_ will smite _you_,"

Thor gritted his teeth, "You speak of no arrangements. You speak only of mere causes, how are we assured that you will not use _them_ against us?"

Hela flicked her wrist and summoned a cloud of smoke which he directed at Thor. Thor caught the object that Hela threw and examined it in his palm.

Hela leaned forward, "Recognize it? It is the same device that your brother had crafted to control _them_. Wear them at all times and they will heed to you. Now you will have no doubts,"

Thor slid the thorny ring in one of his fingers and eyed Hela.

Hela licked her lips and crossed her legs, "Have we reached an agreement Odinson?"

"'Til the portal closes," he spoke with much steel.

Hela nodded, "'til the portal closes,"

She lifted her chin, "One more thing,"

* * *

Had Thor's bargain with Hela been successful, Loki would have to conjure all of what was left of his elemental power to lock the gates with his gauntlets and the only way to that was to piece the scryer together with Dylan's blood and destroy it. Timing was everything. Everything and everyone would have to be in their rightful place at that time and Dylan should not have turned into her true form or else…

The doctor had chained Dee into long shackles which she held. It would have been easier to end Mephistophiles' ploy should she chose to kill him right then and there. They were connected but without her blade to the job, she would just transfer his soul to the silver demon.

Tony, Barton and Romanov kept the distance between the portal and the doctor clear as soon as strange demons surfaced. It was a struggle to keep the air clear for Nick and the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D to depart to ward the rest of Russia. But there was still no sign of Mephistophiles nor Thanos anywhere.

Loki fought alongside his new allies but could not help but check on the state of his priority. The doctor was slowly showing signs of change. The Orion kept the tie to the Nephilim _Beatrice_ strong. He could see Enochian writings draw itself on her skin and her eyes glowed brighter and brighter. They had to move fast. Should the Orion disappear and her blood drip on the scryer, there was no controlling her.

The fury of the Nephilim was beyond any imagination and one who holds the scryer controls the Nephilim.

The Captain sprinted his way towards the portal gates as soon as he spotted Mephistophiles appear. He signaled towards Barton who shot three arrows at Mephistophiles to draw his attention. The Captain threw his shield towards the silver demon who was thrown a few feet away from the gate. The silver demon ran towards the Captain who was only a few steps away from the gate. But, before Mephistophiles could reach him, Loki directed the scepter towards the demon and pushed Rogers into the portal.

Mephistophiles propped to his feet and snarled at Loki, "Ahahahahahaha! You never learn do you Laufeyson?" Mephistophiles drew the angel blade and readied himself to attack the Asgardian prince.

Loki scoffed, "You have not taught me anything worth learning!" Loki jumped towards Mephistophiles and threw the scepter towards him which Mephistophiles quickly deflected with the doctor's blade. Loki grasped the scepter again and sidestepped before Mephistophiles could dive the dagger into his back.

The doctor began to feel more overwhelmed by the pull of the stars that she could not concentrate on the battle before her. She felt a tug on the chains and quickly directed her attention towards John Dee. He was grinning and turning grey and huge. Soon enough, his eyes turned bloody red and his mouth revealed a set of sharp teeth and long tongue, "Tell me Nephilim…" his voice turned deep, "What do you call a mortal who drinks demon blood?" the chains broke as soon as John Dee turned into a beast and howled.

Romanov shot at the thing but to no avail, "What the hell?! Doc!"

The doctor picked herself up and blinked rapidly, "No! Keep the portals clear for Thor! I'll handle him!"

For a minute Loki and Mephistophiles turned to her direction. The silver demon looked pleased and pushed Loki away so that he could join in the confrontation of the Nephilim and the abomination. Loki threw his pike which hit the shoulder of the silver demon. As soon as the demon halted, he swerved to his side and lunged the scepter at his head. For the first time, the demon found himself at his back which gave Loki the opportunity to grab the blade and look for any signs of the scryer. Mephistophiles nudged Loki's leg and kicked the blade away from both of them.

Dylan tried her best to do hand-combat with the transformed Dee but he was regenerating too fast. She gave the demon a heavy punch and ran towards the blade as Loki and Mephistophiles kept on with their struggle to get off each other. Seeing this, Loki, held Mephistophiles by the neck and let his gauntlets touch his skin. The silver demon yelped and summoned for his minions to assist him.

Dylan ran as fast as she could as Dee tailed her. The others were all too preoccupied as well that only Tony was able to shoot at the abomination.

"Over here SPAWN!" he taunted which made Dee summon demonic energy to shoot at him. Tony flew his suit away from the attacks as he kept his eye on the doctor who made her way past the demons to get to the blade.

It was getting darker and darker and yet, there was no sign of Thor nor the Captain anywhere.

* * *

The Captain landed flat-faced on the surface of Thanos' realm. He grunted out of the impact as he pushed himself to stand. In an instant, Thanos let out a surge of energy towards him but the Captain quickly grabbed his shield and deflected his attack.

"Looking for me?" said Thanos hoarsely cackling at the helpless super soldier.

Steve Rogers stood and made a defensive stance, "You've caused enough trouble, hand me the scryer!"

Thanos lifted himself off the ground and directed his fist towards Steve. The Captain received his attack with his shield but struggled to keep the weight of the monster in control, "You mean _this_?" Thanos had the scryer in his free hand and at his hilt, the captain took sight of the vial but as soon as he was about to grab it, Thanos drove the captain towards the edge of the floating dome where the empty space awaited his fall.

Steve was now on his knees, trying his best to keep from getting crushed by his opponent but if there's anything he learned from being the little guy who was always towered over by big bullies, it was that with his disadvantage in size came his knack for speed. Steve propped his shield near the floor and used his legs to spring from the hold of Thanos. As soon as he was momentarily freed, he grabbed the purple Lord's hilt and propelled his way towards its back. He held unto Thanos' back and began climbing to reach his raised hand where he held the scryer. Thanos kept on moving to shake off the mortal clung around his body. Steve took a moment to rethink his decision for his next move but he ran out of options and just shook his head and bit Thanos' arm. Thanos let go of the scryer and the Captain jumped off the huge alien and stretched out his arm to grab the scryer. Luckily he did but as soon as he secured the scryer, he felt Thanos' hand grasp his ankle, "Hoooh boy," he said staring at the smiling Thanos.

Thanos lifted the Captain and dragged him harshly towards the ground. The impact took a toll on the Captain and felt blood trickle fast down his face and lip but he kept the scryer safe around his chest. Thanos lifted the Captain again this time, face first to see the darkness that was afoot should he choose to drop the human.

"Drop me _and_ you drop the scryer!" He shouted sprouting out the blood that formed in his mouth.

Thanos smiled grimly, "Or hand me the scryer and live you fool!"

Steve darted his eyes towards his shield and held out his hands in surrender but kept one hand in closed fist as he said something in a low tone.

Thanos winced.

"I said, CATCH!" Steve threw the vial of blood at the shield which made Thanos fumble. Steve quickly anchored his body forward still clutching the scryer in one hand and grabbed unto the ledge as Thanos ran to grab the vial. The vial landed near the shield and cracked but not enough for all of the blood to drip out. The Captain pulled himself up, bloodied and leg broken even as he hurried towards his shield. As soon as Thanos was about to grab the vial, Steve threw his shield as Thanos' hand and slid to grab the vial himself. Thanos lifted both of his arms and pounded on the dome which began to crack and disperse as Steve continued to slide to the edge. Steve was about to put the vial on his pocket as it slipped from his fingers. There was no other action that could be done but all actions that would point to his survival. He positioned himself for his fall as he half knelt and grabbed the shield that boomeranged its way back to him, "I hope this works!"

He looked at his blood-stained scryer and threw it towards the direction where he was falling and chanted the enochian phrase to open a portal and watched as Thanos came after him.

_The scryer remembers the donor's birthright. _The doctor's words cradled in his thoughts as he watched himself fall off the dome where Thanos, enraged watched his supposed death.

The Captain repeated the enchantment which made the scryer react. His blood crystallized around the sphere which emitted a silver light that enveloped the space he occupied. He felt sucked into the continuum as he heard the growl of Thanos who watched him being transported and soon he found himself on solid ground, back on Earth.

He panted hard and wiped the blood that dripped in his mouth before he took hold of the now bloodless scryer. He looked at the sky and let out a breath, "Thank God…"

* * *

**AN: Merry Christmas! My gift? An update! Sorry it took so long, expect that for quite a while my Med Applications, thesis defense and whole other school stuff aren't quite done yet. But, its almost done (the story I mean)! I thought that I'd write this chapter with more of a Siege:Thor vibe. I really loved that series. Hope you guys are keeping warm and happy for the Holidays! Peace and Love! :D**

**-LVS**

What did Dylan ask of Loki that he can't seem to promise back?**  
**

What did Thor bargain for?

Is anyone going to die?

Will the Captain get there in time?

Will there be a happy ending for Loki and Dylan?

Where the hell is Nick?

* * *

Disclaimers:

All Angelic, prophetic and holy reference is purely fiction. I have created my own interpretation of its history and is by no means a way of disrespect or blasphemy against any (church particularly the Christian). I have strong beliefs which lay separate from my world of fictional writing. Mephistophiles and John Dee are based on historical figures (mythical and real) as I have read in some of my researches.

Eroberung means conquest.

Dylan Sinclair ©LVS (as well as Mephistophiles and John Dee renditions in this story)

The Avengers, Thanos, Chitauri, Hela, Mephisto ©Marvel

Worth (c) LVS

Cover Photo (c) Kibbitzer via DA


	12. Eroberung: Emancipation

**"Worth"**

* * *

An Avengers Fanfiction

© Lady-von-Strife

* * *

**Part II: EROBERUNG**

* * *

FOUR: _Emancipation_

* * *

**LOKI**

* * *

"Steve!" The doctor called out to the Captain. He was in horrible shape. He was losing pints of blood and his broken limbs did not help him dodge his new set of attackers. Thanos was a formidable foe but in the very least, I had to commend him for retrieving the scryer. The sight of it brought a little ease on all of us.

Stark had kept the transformed Dee occupied as the doctor made her way towards the Captain. The vial was nowhere to be found though, it was quite troubling. She had secure it before Mephistophiles did.

"Where do your eyes linger to Laufeyson? Your opponent is here!" Mephistophiles hissed, slicing the Nephilim dagger at my side. I was quick to avoid his strike but that did not hinder him from attacking me. His scalded face was still seared in smoke as enochian writings transferred on his skin. The pain shooting through him gave me an advantage. I struck his back with my scepter and shot a cosmic wave through him making him yelp but his adrenaline was quick to awaken and he scrambled to his feet and made his way towards Dee who was now three times bigger than he was.

Dee had lost all insight of being human. He has sucummed to the dark side as it is. He would finally receive no mercy from any of us.

"The scryer!" Mephistophiles directed Dee towards Rogers and Dylan, luckily, Barton had arrived and shot through the morphed scientist's chest, halting his movement. The pseudodemon roared and began summoning a grey mist around him and Mephistophiles. He was bringing more demons into surface, opening portals beyond our control.

I cleared a way for Stark to fly and picket the doctor towards the weakened soldier. The doctor jumped on top of one of the demon's backs and was caught by Stark who dropped her beside the Captain. The scientific machinery of Stark was taking a toll on the demons. He had the mark on him. The anointing was taking effect.

The doctor and Stark took out the demons pounding on Rogers and managed to bring the Captain at a safe distance for a while but the Captain was in no mood to be tended. He was too fatigued to fight, any more strains on his limbs and he might lose function on them permanently.

"Hey! Hang in there!" Stark yelled, barring the distance between him and the doctor.

The doctor knelt to Rogers' side and pressed on his wound, "Steve! You've gotta stay awake!" Steve nodded as he tried to prop himself forward. His bloody and shaky hands held up the scryer. The doctor's eyes widened.

"T-take it…there's no time," he coughed up blood. He was losing consciousness.

She nods, lacing her hand around his, "Leave everything to me. Thank you Steve," he smiles at her and begins to inspect his broken arm, "I'll be okay…" he quips. The doctor looked at him with much care. The Captain had been nothing but pleasant and just. It was heartbreaking for her to see a noble man like him fight for his life.

There's a small part of me wondering if that was what she looked like from afar when _I _was in peril. I shake all thoughts of self-pity and away and concentrate.

Tony placed a hand on her shoulder, "I'll get Romanov and the others back, I'll keep an eye on him,"

"Alright," she looks at Rogers one more time and kisses his temple. It was a small and well earned sign of gratitude. I felt to envy.

As she held up the scryer, the blood that was once Rogers began to dissipate and it crystallized into a solid and clean form. Her eyes glowed synonymously to it. It was calling out to her. With the scryer in her possession, we could end the battle and all that was left was for me to retrieve her dagger.

She looks at me in full trust. Only I could be fit for this task at least, it hasn't come to _that _point I feared. She would begin the ritual and all we had to do was contain her until I retrieve the dagger.

She threw the scryer towards the sky and mouthed something enochian. The scryer emitted a push of gravity and light that drew enochian writings in the air. The inscriptions circled around her and created a barrier over her. The Orion began to trace itself in the sky and I could no longer see her cyan eyes. The pull of her Nephilim blood could close all of the gates but Thor was nowhere to be found still and the only way to seal the gates was for her to cast the blood magic. I had to hurry.

Dee and Mephistophiles were tailing me now. The demons had been constantly increasing in number that even the help of Romanov and Barton was put to no use. The two larger demons were planning on closing up on me and there was no place to run. I had managed to control their collision by the power I had acquired from the doctor's life-vial embedded on my scepter. I first released frost to push away Dee. For a moment, I saw my hand transform into its real form. Another minute passed and I was able to grab Mephistophiles' wrist struggling to thrust the dagger through my chest once more. I use more of my elemental powers to weaken his grip. He fights through the pain. His eyes began to turn a complete shade of black but he wouldn't give up. He frees himself momentarily from my grip and attacks once more.

I hear my new found comrades struggle but I bid them no mind. They were losing but I had no choice but to place sole care towards Mephistophiles. Once the Orion reaches the point where it traces the star of Beatrice, she would transform and if we don't get hold of the scryer and close the portals then, we would be facing an even more daunting enemy-The Nephilim.

I knew from the start that a clean finish would be improbable but it was also the greatest of my fears. I did not prepare myself for any event that would turn against our favor.

"Loki!" It was Stark calling now, he knew that we were losing time but I wasn't just fighting off Mephistophiles, I was dealing with his minions as well.

At my peripheral, I see Barton getting chased by Dee. His sides have been gnawed on by the smaller demons and the scratch on his back by the abomination was getting worse. Stark had no choice but fly the now unconscious Captain leaving Romanov alone to fend for herself.

Mephistophiles had disappeared. He was trying to buy time to recuperate. At least that's what I had hoped. I was far from where the doctor was and I was beginning to think that the wretched demon has already made his way towards her. But, I knew that even without them speaking, they needed my help.

But who would I go to first?

I try my best to aid them through the power of the scepter but I too was defending myself from the minions of the dark. It was difficult and I couldn't decide who needed my aid first. On top of it, no one was keeping the area clear for Dylan. It was dangerous to leave the scryer unwatched especially now that the doctor was still trapped inside the barrier it created. Yes, the barrier had completed its form and now the Nephilim awaits its master to release her.

She has not quite changed in form but she no longer looked human. Though, she still looked troubled. Her glass eyes dart across the battlefield where she eyes painfully at her comrades slowly getting beaten down. _She wants me to help them._

__Her request was both risk and gamble. She knew the price to pay for a missed chance at reacquiring the dagger but she knew that she could not bare to watch helplessly as her friends risk their lives for her.

_She's still herself. _A good sign. There was hope still.

Another portal opened and this time the gate opened above us. Like a comet speeding up its landing, my brother dashed for Dee, holding up Mjolnir as it gathered thunder in his hands. As soon as he landed, he crushed the hammer on the mad scientist's skull creating a moment of blindness as the Thunder raged through Dee's skin until he turned to ash.

The fact that my brother may have killed a mortal would definitely give him a tinge of guilt but he had no time to ponder on it now. That monster had it coming.

"Thor!" I call out to him and he immediately understands what I ask him to do. He needed to clear the arena and fast. He gave me a crooked smile and raised his other hand to which I notice a familiar artifact. I make my way to his side and ready my stance as he uses Hela's token.

_And so we meet again_. I grin.

With a flick of green light, a surge of angry screeches and spirits ascended from Thor's ring summoning Asgardian warrior-princesses in their skeletal forms. I had known them. The lethal and ruthless _Disir. _The eerie glamour of the banished Valkyries sent a thrill towards me. Of all people, I knew what they were capable of. There were less things to worry about now.

They hiss at me, their old master, who used them but carelessly and unjustly but they turn to the heed of my brother to banish the lost souls embedded in the smaller demons. One by one, they provide relief to the Avengers but the sight of their cannibalism and prowess was not a pretty one to behold. It left most of them mute but they knew better than to contest such movements. They had to survive.

Stark was finally able to lay down the Captain back on the ground without the worry of anything attacking him. He jets back into the air and towards us, "What the hell was the that?!" The Disir continue to swirl around us, eating away the demons and providing us a clear path towards the doctor. When they finally dispose of Dee, the source of the demons, the portals begin to close and we were left with but a herd of demons. Stark kept clear of the floating spirits.

Their voices hum the tune of nothing but death. "Our bargain is finished…" One of the Disir floats towards Thor. He nods at her and she disappears into the void along with her sisters. Hela has kept her bargain but I begin to wonder what we have bargain for in exchange for the underworld queen's assistance.

I knew my brother would not be reckless about the juncture that even after they had retreated, he kept the ring on his finger. He could not risk losing control of them especially now that Mephistophiles was still in hiding.

Thor grips his hammer tighter eyeing what was left of the demons, "Let us finish this brother,"

I nod but before we could catch our breath, Mephistophiles reappears, more silvery and red than ever. He is enraged now. He uses the power of the dagger to bring about dark magic. I do not wait for him to finish, I speed towards him, scepter in hand, ready to fire. He release orbs of flames at me which I deflect easily. I use my phantom selves to confuse him but it seems as though he wasn't even trying to harm me that much. Either way, I needed the dagger. I am able to grab the side of his head and bury my fist into his face. He crashes with a loud thud, near the celestial ring where the doctor was. She was no longer mobile. She looked like a cosmic statue and it was riveting.

I look over my foe who was now too bloodied to look like the demon we first encountered. I was briskly approaching him when he threw the dagger towards me and sprinted up. I manage to grab the dagger before it buried itself in my chest. But as soon as I clutch it, Mephistophiles apparatus and clasps the scryer. The barrier reacts as he removes it from its mount. The enochian writings begin to wither and I double my pace towards them.

_He doesn't have her blood. It's not too late._

Mephistophiles' eyes are crazed and bloodshot at the sight of the Nephilim being freed. I can't even call her by her name. She was…who she said she was from the beginning.

Still I try, "Dylan!" I call out for her but she doesn't hear me. She was only omnipresent.

I flip the dagger and ready myself to tackle the damn demon. He doesn't move and instead brings out the vial that contained her blood. He had tricked _Thanos after all._

He crushes the glass and allows her blood to crystallize on the scryer. The scryer floats away from him and towards the doctor, who was now brandished in nothing but light.

It began to quake and we all felt like we were being whirled into another dimension. I fought to keep my eyes open. Mephistophiles was kneeling in awe at was happening. He had damned us all.

I apparate to his back now. He senses my presence but he does not move. My gauntlets react as I grip the dagger tighter and shove the blade through his heart. He does not scream. He traces the blade with his fingers and turns to me with the same expression of delight. I quickly withdraw the blade and watch him collapse. He does not close his eyes. He continues to look towards the heavens. He knows that she is coming. And now that her supposed master is dead, no one could control her.

The blade feels heavier than my gauntlets now. The scepter would not work against her and so I set it down. It had all come to the need to fulfill her request.

My world definitely felt like it was ending.

I look at my comrades as if to tell them to prepare for what was afoot. The gates of the demons had closed and so were the other portals leaving us with a vengeful Nephilim on Earth.

_Promise me._ I hear her voice clearly in my head.

I knew what I had to do but still…I repeated the words I let out that same night.

"Until there is no more hope, I will hold on to your life…"

Hope may seem barren but my intentions are pure.

I will save her. I will save all of us.

Even if it kills me.

* * *

**AN: After a long long long while...I have updated. Part 2 is close to its...conclusion and only a few more chapters until the whole story ends. Will probably updated by next Monday. Thank you for your patience!**

**Thoughts and flames? Feel free to share them.**

**-LVS**

* * *

Disclaimers:

All Angelic, prophetic and holy reference is purely fiction. I have created my own interpretation of its history and is by no means a way of disrespect or blasphemy against any (church particularly the Christian). I have strong beliefs which lay separate from my world of fictional writing. Mephistophiles and John Dee are based on historical figures (mythical and real) as I have read in some of my researches.

Eroberung means conquest.

Dylan Sinclair ©LVS (as well as Mephistophiles and John Dee renditions in this story)

The Avengers, Thanos, Chitauri, Hela, Mephisto, Disir ©Marvel

Worth (c) LVS

Cover Photo (c) Kibbitzer via DA


End file.
